Visits to the Saratoga battle-grounds, 1780-1880. With an introduction and notes

istorical Juries,
o. 23.

-vz^

i

fifcz, /z^#^ -

VISITS

SARATOGA BATTLE - GROUNDS

1780-1880.

With an Introduction and Notes.

By WILLIAM L. STONE,

AUTHOR OF " THE LIFE AND TIMES OF SIR WILLIAM JOHNSON, BART.,";" REVO-
LUTIONARY LETTERS," PAUSCH'S JOURNAL," " BURGOYNE'S CAMPAIGN
AND ST. LEGER'S EXPEDITION," " MEMOIRS OF MRS. AND GEN.
RIEDESEL," "HISTORY OF NEW YORK CITY," "LIFE AND
WRITINGS OF COL.WM. L. STONE," " REMINISCENCES
OF SARATOGA AND BALLSTON," " THE STONE
GENEALOGY," "THE STARIN GENE-
ALOGY," ETC., ETC.

" There is a charm in footing slow,

" Across a silent plain,
'' Where patriot battle has been fought.

" Where glory had the gain." — KEATS.

ALBANY, N. Y.

JOEL MUNSELL'S SONS, PUBLISHERS,
1895.

93677

E

gou. gotm

of Wa^infltott, g. (^.,
the
*. game,

of lUw ^[0rfe (Kity,
<Thi.$ ivciTh i.s affertionateli) flftUfatftl by their toother in

a j. x.,

DESCRIPTION OF THE PHOTOGRAPH WHICH FORMS THE
FRONTISPIECE OF THIS VOLUME.

The frontispiece represents the ground on which the battles of
September iQth and October yth were fought, as seen from the
door-yard of the house now (1895) owned and occupied by Mr.
James Walker, one mile and a-half from the Hudson river look-
ing East. On the left, is " Breymann's Hill," on which was the
redoubt at the extreme right wing of the British army, before the
last battle. The little white speck seen on it is the tablet erected by
Gen. J. Watts de Peyster on the spot where Arnold was wounded
in his desperate but successful attack on that position. The line
of trees toward the right is the spot where Burgoyne formed his
line on the brow of the elevated plain previous to the battle of
the igth of September. Beyond the gap and between the line of
woods, the narrow line of mist is the Hudson river; while the
table-mountain seen in the distance, is " Willard's Mountain," so-
called, from an American scout of that name, who was detailed
to watch from its summit the movements of the British army —
displaying signals at night by different colored lights.* About
fifteen rods south from where the observer is supposed to stand
and in what was then, and is now, a meadow, is the place where
Gen. Fraser was mortally wounded by the sharp-shooter Murphy.
It is on the west side of the Quaker Springs road running north
and south, while some sixty rods south-east, is the knoll on
which occurred the hottest of the fight of October yth, between
the British Grenadiers and the American troops under Dearborn,
Morgan, Learned, Poor and Cilly, so graphically described by
Gen. Wilkinson in his " Memoirs."

* See, on this point, as well as for much valuable information about
Schuyler and Gates, Gen. Ed. F. Bullard's admirable Centennial Address
at Schuylerville, N. Y., in 1876. This address, since published in pam-
phlet form, should be in the hands of every student of this particular
episode of our Revolutionary history.

TABLE OF CONTENTS.

INTRODUCTION.

VISITS OF THE DIFFERENT PERSONAGES
GIVEN IN THIS WORK:

CHASTELLUX, . . . . 1780

MRS. DWIGHT, . . . . .1791

LlANCOURT, ..... 1795

TIMOTHY DWIGHT, .... 1799

SlLLIMAN, . . . . . 1819

THEODORE DWIGHT, .... 1820

WIRT, . . . . . 1821
STANSBURY, . . . ; .1821

HOYT, ..... 1825

WOODRUFF, ..... 1827

STUART, . . . . . 1828

MATTOON, ..... 1835

MRS. SPURGEON, .... 1879

DE PEYSTER, ..... 1880

APPENDIX:

I. SCHUYLER'S FAITHFUL SPY.

II. GATES' SCOUTS, BRYAN, HARDIN'S ADVENTURE,

ETC.

III. ANECDOTES OF BURGOYNE'S CAMPAIGN.

IV. PRESENT APPEARANCE OF THE SARATOGA BAT-

TLE-GROUNDS.

V. MRS'. WALWORTH'S LETTER.
VI. THE TABLETS ON THE SARATOGA BATTLE-
GROUNDS.

VII. SKETCH OF JOTHAM BEMUS.
VIII. GILES B. SLOCUM'S LETTER.

PREFACE.

" When I said I would die a bachelor," says
Benedick, " I did not think I should live till I were
married." So, when I said in the Preface to my
" Burgoyne Ballads" that it would probably be my
last book on this subject, I did not think I should
live to complete another ; afterwards, ho_wever, it
occurred to me that, by way of a final supplement
to my " Burgoyne series," it might be well to bring
together, in a collected form, the different visits
which have been made to the Saratoga Battle
Grounds, during the last hundred years, by dis-
tinguished personages at home and abroad — culled
from books which now are either extremely rare,
or, at least, are not easily accessible to the general
reader. How successful I have been in this effort
the perusers of this volume must decide.

If, moreover, it should be asked, " Why does the
author devote so much time to Burgoyne's Campaign
and the various incidents which group themselves

io Preface.

around this portion of the Revolutionary history ?,"
the reply is, that the Battles of Saratoga, leading up
to the surrender of Burgoyne, were the turning point
in the success or the failure of the American Revo-
lution— without which, the French alliance, even
with the exertions of Franklin, would never have
been accomplished — an event that alone rendered
the Surrender at Yorktown, and the consequent inde-
pendence of the Colonies possible. In short, the
present proud position of the United States among
Nations hinged entirely upon this episode of our
country's annals. Nor am I alone in this estimate.
Gen. J. Watts de Peyster — than whom, together
with Gen. Horatio Rogers, — there is no better au-
thority on this campaign, says : "Gates, termed in
sarcasm the ' Man mid-wife,' and accidentally pre-
sent at the proper moment — although he had not
superintended the progress of the terrible and pro-
tracted labor, did absolutely play the part of an ac-
coucheur, and ushered into being a new Nation, a
NEW WORLD." Creasy, the eminent historian, also
classes " Saratoga " as the " Thirteenth of the fifteen
decisive battles of the world from Marathon to
Waterloo."

My thanks are due, in the preparation of this
work, to Mr. John J. Dalgleish of Brankston Grange,

Preface. 1 1

Scotland — whose grandfather served under Bur-
goyne — ; Mr. Frederick Barnard of New York city ;
Hon. Samuel C. Eastman of Concord, N. H.; Hon.
Daniel B. Pond of Woonsocket, R. I. ; Benjamin F.
Stevens of Boston, Mass.; Hon. Charles S. Lester and
Hon. Winsor B. French of Saratoga Springs, N. Y.;
Mr. William S. Mersereau of Elizabeth, N. J., and
Rev. Dr. Emery and Mrs. Dr. Smith Ely of New-
burgh, N. Y. Nor must I forget to acknowledge my
indebtedness to Mrs. Ellen Hardin Walworth of
Saratoga Springs, N. Y., for the use of the fine
photograph of the " Saratoga Battle Ground," which
forms the frontispiece of this volume ; * and, also, to
Mr. Frank S. Hull of Newburgh, N. Y., for the
picture of a Brunswick, "Jack-boot," which will be
found in the " Introduction."

WILLIAM L. STONE.
Mr. VERNON, N. Y., January \st., 1895.

* For a detailed description of this frontispiece, see
the page immediately preceding the Table of Con-
tents.

£»2£§££§£?

/—~>sf$\/ — v^ <£-./ — ^-^Kjv

/-,^r^>-^r^

INTRODUCTION.

The disastrous result of the campaign of General
Burgoyne is to be ascribed more to his own blunders
and incompetency than to any special military skill
on the part of his conqueror. In December, 1776,
Burgoyne concerted with the British ministry a plan
for the campaign of 1777. A large force was to pro-
ceed toward Albany from Canada, by way of the
lakes, while another large body advanced up the
Hudson, in order to cut off communication between
the northern and southern colonies, in the expecta-
tion that each section, being left to itself, would be
subdued with little difficulty. At the same time Col.
St. Leger was to make a diversion on the Mohawk
river. In pursuance of this plan, in the early sum-
mer of 1777 he sailed down Lake Champlain, forced
the evacuation of Crown Point and Ticonderoga, de-
feated the Americans badly at Hubbardton, and
took possession of Skenesborough (Whitehall).*

* The royal army was divided into three brigades,
under Major-General Phillips, of the Royal Artillery,

1 4 Introduction.

Up to this time all had gone well. From that
point, however, his fortunes began to wane. His
true course would have been to return to Ticonde-
roga, and thence up Lake George to the fort of that
name, whence there was a direct road to Fort Ed-
ward ; instead of which he determined to push on to
Fort Ann and Fort Edward, over roads that were
blocked up by the enemy — a course which gave
Schuyler ample time to gather the yeomanry to-
gether and effectually oppose his progress. Nor
was this all. On his arrival at Fort Ann, instead of
advancing at once on Fort Edward, and thence to
Albany before Schuyler had time to concentrate his
forces in his front, he sent a detachment of Brims-
wickers, under Colonel Baum, to Bennington, to sur-
prise and capture some stores which he had heard
were at that place. General Riedesel, who com-
manded the German allies, was totally opposed to
this diversion, but being overruled, he proposed that
Baum should march in the rear of the enemy, by
way of Castleton, toward the Connecticut river.
Had this plan been adopted, the probability is that

and Brigadier-Generals Fraser and Hamilton. The
German troops, consisting of one regiment of Hes-
sian Rifles, a corps of dismounted dragoons, and a
mixed force of Brunswickers, of which 100 were
artillerists, were distributed among the three bri-
gades, with one corps of reserve under Colonel
Breyman, and were commanded by Major-General
Riedesel.

KOOT OF ONE OF RIEDESEL'S DRAGOONS-

At Washington's Headquarters,

Newburgh, N. Y.

Introduction. 1 5

the Americans would not have had time to prevent
Baum from falling unawares upon their rear. Bur-
goyne, however, against the advice of Riedesel and
Phillips, insisted obstinately on his plan, which was
that Baum should cross the Battenkil opposite Sara-
toga, move down the Connecticut river in a direct
line to Bennington, destroy the magazine at that
place, and mount the Brunswick dragoons, who were
destined to form part of the expedition. In this lat-
ter order a fatal blunder was committed, by employ-
ing troops the most awkward and heavy in an enter-
prise where every thing depended on the greatest
celerity of movement, while the rangers, who were
lightly equipped, were left behind.

Let us look for a moment at a fully equipped
Brunswick dragoon as he appeared at this time. He
wore high and heavy jack-boots, with large, long
spurs, stout and stiff leather breeches, gauntlets
reaching high up upon his arms, and a hat with a
huge tuft of ornamental feathers.* On his side he

* The weight of the Brunswick Jack-Boot — a re-
presentation of which is here given — is 5^ Ibs. or 1 1
Ibs. for the pair — when, moreover, it is observed that
a considerable portion of the top has rotted away, the
boot, when new, must have weighed fully 6 Ibs. or 12
Ibs. for the pair ! ! And this only for the boots — to
say nothing of the dragoon's other equipments. The
man, who wore this boot, was captured at Saratoga.
He travelled on foot with other prisoners on his way to
Easton, Pa., as far as Middlehope (North Newburgh),
where he exchanged his boots for a lighter pair.

1 6 Introduction.

trailed a tremendous broadsword, a short but clumsy
carbine was slung over his shoulder, and down his
back, like a Chinese mandarin's, dangled a long queue.
Such were the troops sent out by the British general
on a service requiring the lightest of light skirmishers.
The latter, however, did not err from ignorance.
From the beginning of the campaign the English
officers had ridiculed these unwieldy troopers, who
strolled about the camp with their heavy sabres drag-
ging on the ground, saying (which was a fact) that
the hat and sword of one of them were as heavy as
the whole of an English private's equipment. But,
as if this was not sufficient, these light dragoons were
still further cumbered by being obliged to carry flour
and drive a herd of cattle before them for their main-
tenance on the way.

The result may be easily foreseen. By a rapid
movement of the Americans under Stark, Baum was
cut off from his English allies, who fled and left him
to fight alone, with his awkwardly equipped squad, an
enemy far superior in numbers. After maintaining
his ground for more than two hours, his ammunition
gave out, and being wounded in the abdomen by
a bullet, he was forced to surrender, having lost
in killed 360 men out of 400. Yet, even with all
these disadvantages, it is doubtful upon whose ban-
ners victory would have perched, had not Burgoyne,
though having ample time, failed to support Baum by
keeping Breyman's division too far behind.

Introduction. 1 7

With the failure of this expedition against Ben-
nington, the first lightning flashed from Burgoyne's
hitherto serene sky. The soldiers as well as their
officers had set out on this campaign with cheerful
hearts, for, the campaign successfully brought to a
close, all must end in the triumph of the royal arms.
" Britons never go back," Burgoyne exultantly had
said, as the flotilla passed down Lake Champlain.
Now, however, the Indians deserted by scores, and
an almost general consternation and languor took the
place of the former confidence and buoyancy.*

On the 1 3th of September the royal army crossed
the Hudson by a bridge of boats, with the design of
forming a junction with Sir Henry Clinton at Albany.
It encamped on the heights and plains of Saratoga,
near the mouth of Fish Creek (the present site of
Schuylerville), within a few miles of the northern
division of the Continentals under Gates ; Burgoyne
selecting General Schuyler's house as his head-
quarters.

After the evacuation of Fort Edward, Schuyler had
fallen down the river, first to Stillwater, and then to
Van Schaick's Island, at the mouth of the Mohawk, f

* For a most romantic incident, said to have been
the cause of this desertion of Burgoyne's Indian
allies, see " The Lost Child," in " Tales of the Garden
of Kosciusko," by Samuel L. Knapp, New York,
1834.

fThe entrenchments which Schuyler threw up on
this island, in anticipation of Burgoyne's advance,

3

1 8 Introduction.

On the igth of August, however, he was superseded
by Gates, who, on the 8th of September, advanced
with 6000 men to Bemus Heights, three miles north
of Stillwater. These heights were at once fortified,
under the direction of Kosciusko, by a line of intrench-
ments running from west to east, half a mile in
length, and terminating on the east end on the west
side of the intervale. The right wing occupied a hill
nearest the river, and was protected in front by a wide
marshy ravine, and behind by an abatis. The left
wing, commanded by Arnold (who, after the defeat
of St. Leger at Fort Stanwix, had joined Gates), ex-
tended on to a height three-quarters of a mile further
north, its left flank being also protected on the hill-
side by fallen trees. Gates's head-quarters were in
the centre, a little south of what was then and is
now known as the " Neilson Farm."

On the 1 5th, Burgoyne gave the order to advance
in search of the enemy, supposed to be somewhere in
the forest ; for, strange as it appears, that general had
no knowledge of the position of the Americans, nor
had he taken any pains to inform himself upon this
vital point. The army, in gala dress, with its left
wing resting on the Hudson, set off on its march, with
drums beating, colors flying, and their arms glisten-
ing in the sunshine of that lovely autumn day. " It
was a superb spectacle," says an eye-witness, " re-
are yet (1895) plainly to be seen, even by the
traveller on the Troy & Saratoga R. R.

Introduction. \ 9

minding one of a grand parade in the midst of peace."
That night they pitched their camp at " Dovogat's
House" (Coveville). On the following morning the
enemy's drums were heard calling the men to arms ;
but, although in such close proximity, the invading
army knew not whence the sounds came, nor in what
strength he was posted. Indeed, it does not seem
that up to this time Burgoyne had sent off patrols or
scouting parties to discover the situation of the enemy.
Now, however, he mounted his horse to attend to it
himself, taking with him a strong body-guard, consist-
ing of the four regiments of Specht and Hesse-Hanau,
with six heavy pieces of ordnance, and 200 workmen
to construct bridges and roads. This was the party
with which he proposed " to scout, and, if occasion
served " — these were his words — "to attack the reb-
els on the spot." This remarkable scouting party
moved with such celerity as to accomplish two and a
half miles the first day, when, in the evening, the en-
tire army, which had followed on, encamped at
"Sword's House," within five miles of the American
lines.

The night of the i8th passed quietly, the patrols
that had finally been sent out having returned with-
out discovering any trace of the enemy. Indeed, it
is a noteworthy fact that throughout the entire cam-
paign Burgoyne was never able to obtain accurate
knowledge either of the position of the Americans or
of their movements, whereas all his own plans were
publicly known long before they were officially given

2O Introduction.

out in orders. " I observe," writes Baroness Riedesel,
at this time, " that the wives of the officers are before-
hand informed of all the military plans. Thus the
Americans anticipate all our movements, and expect
us wherever we arrive ; and this, of course, injures
our affairs."

On the morning of the iQth a further advance was
ordered — an advance which prudence dictated should
be made with the greatest caution. The army was
now in the immediate vicinity of an alert and thor-
oughly aroused enemy, of whose strength it knew as
little as of the country. Notwithstanding this, the
army not only was divided into three columns, march-
ing half a mile apart, but at eleven o'clock a cannon,
fired as a signal for the start, informed the Americans
of the position and forward movement of the British.

The left column, which followed the river road,
consisted of four German regiments and the Forty-
seventh British, the latter covering the bateaux.
These troops, together with all the heavy artillery
and baggage, were under the command of General
Riedesel. The right column, made up of the English
grenadiers and light infantry, the Twenty-fourth
Brunswick Grenadiers, and the light battalion, with
eight 6-pounders, under Lieutenant-Colonel Breyman,
were led by General Fraser, and followed the present
road from Quaker Springs to Stillwater on the
Heights. The centre column, also on the Heights,
and midway between the left and right wings, con-
sisted of the Ninth, Twentieth, Twenty-first, and

Introduction. 2 1

Sixty-second regiments, with six 6-pounders, and was
led by Burgoyne in person. The front and flanks of
the center and right columns were protected by Cana-
dians, Provincials, and Indians. The march was
exceedingly tedious, as frequently new bridges had
to be built and trees cut down and removed.

About one o'clock in the afternoon, Colonel Mor-
gan, who, with his sharp-shooters, had been detached
to watch the movements of the British and harass
them, owing to the dense woods, unexpectedly fell in
in with the centre column and sharply attacked it.
Whereupon Eraser, on the right, wheeled his troops,
and coming up, forced Morgan to give way. A regi-
ment being ordered to the assistance of the latter,
whose riflemen had been sadly scattered by the vigor
of the attack, the battle was renewed with spirit.
By four o'clock the action had become general,
Arnold, with nine Continental regiments and Mor-
gan's corps, having completely engaged the whole
force of Burgoyne and Fraser. The contest, acci-
dentally begun in the first instance, now assumed the
most obstinate and determined character, the sold-
iers being often engaged hand to hand. The ground,
being mostly covered with woods, embarrassed the
British in the use of their field artillery, while it gave
a corresponding advantage to Morgan's sharp-shoot-
ers. The artillery fell into the hands of the Ameri-
cans at every alternate discharge, but the latter could
neither turn it upon the enemy nor bring it off. The
woods prevented the last, and the want of a match the

2 2 Introduction.

first, as the linstock was invariably carried away, and
the rapidity of the transitions did not allow the
Americans time to provide one.

Meanwhile General Riedesel, who had kept abreast
of the other two columns, hearing the firing, on his
own responsibility; and guided only by the sound of
the cannon, hastened, at five o'clock, with two regi-
ments through the woods to the relief of his com-
mander-in-chief. When he arrived on the scene, the
Americans were posted on a corner of the woods,
having on their right flank a deep, muddy ravine, the
bank of which had been rendered inaccessible by
stones and underbrush. In front of this corner of
the forest, and entirely surrounded by dense woods,
was a vacant space, on which the English were drawn
up in line, The struggle was for the possession of
this clearing, known then, as it is to this day, as
" Freeman's Farm." It had already been in posses-
sion of both parties, and now served as a support for
the left flank of the English right wing, the right
flank being covered by the corps of Fraser and Brey-
man. The Continentals had for the sixth time hurled
fresh troops against the three British regiments, the
Twentieth, Twenty-first and Sixty-second. The guns
on this wing were already silenced, there being no
more ammunition, and the artillery-men having been
either killed or wounded. These three regiments had
lost half their men, and now formed a small band
surrounded by heaps of the dead and dying. The
timely arrival of the German general alone saved the

Introduction. 23

army of Burgoyne from total rout. Charging on
the double-quick with fixed bayonets, he repelled
the American ; and Fraser and Breyman were pre-
paring to follow up the advantage, when they were
recalled by Burgoyne and reluctantly forced to retreat.
General Schuyler, referring to this in his diary, says :
" Had it not been for this order of the British gene-
ral, the Americans would have been, if not defeated,
at least held in such check as to have made it a drawn
battle, and an oppurtunity afforded the British to col-
lect much provision, of which he \_sic\ stood sorely in
need." The British officers also shared the same
opinion. Fraser and Riedesel severely criticised the
order, telling its author in plain terms that "he did
not know how to avail himself of his advantages."
Nor was this feeling confined to the officers. The
privates gave vent to their dissatisfaction against their
general in loud expressions of scorn as he rode down
the line. This reaction was the more striking be-
cause they had placed the utmost confidence in his
capacity at the beginning of the expedition. They
were, also, still more confirmed in their dislike by
the general belief that he was addicted to drinking.
Night put an end to the conflict. The Americans
withdrew within their lines, and the British and Ger-
man forces bivouacked on the battle-field, the Bruns.
wickers composing in part the right wing. Both
parties claimed the victory ; yet as the intention of
the Americans was not to advance, but to maintain
their position, and that of the English not to main-

24 Introduction.

tain theirs, but to gain ground, it is easy to see which
had the advantage of the day, The loss of the
former was between 300 and 400, including Colonels
Adams and Coburn, and of the latter from 600 to
1000, Captain Jones, of the artillery, an officer of
great merit, being among the killed.

General Burgoyne resolved after the engagement
to advance no further for the present, but to await
the arrival at Albany of Sir Henry Clinton, who had
promised to attempt the ascent of the Hudson for
his relief. Accordingly, on the following day (the
2Oth), he made the site of the late battle his ex-
treme right, and extended his intrenchments across
the high ground to the river. For the defense of the
right wing, a redoubt (known as the " Great Re-
doubt") was thrown up in the late battle-field, near
the corner of the woods that had been occupied by
the Americans during the action, on the eastern edge
of the ravine. The defense of this position was in-
trusted to the corps of Eraser. The reserve corps of
Breyman was posted on an eminence on the western
side of the ravine, for the protection of the right flank
of Eraser's division. The right wing of the English
brigade (Hamilton's) was placed in close proximity to
the left wing of Eraser, thus extending the line on the
left to the river-bank (Wilbur's Basin), where were
placed the hospitals and supply trains. The entire front
was protected by a deep muddy ditch running 900 paces
in front of the outposts of the left wing. This ditch
ran in a curve around the right wing of the English

Introduction. 25

brigade, thereby separating- Eraser's corps from the
main body. General Burgoyne made his headquar-
ters between the English and German troops, on the
heights at the left wing. This was the new camp at
" Freeman's Farm."

During the period of inaction which now inter-
vened, a part of the army, says the private journal
of one of the German officers, was so near its an-
tagonist that " we could hear his morning and
evening guns, his drums, and other noises in his
camp very distinctly ; but we knew not, in the least,
where he stood, nor how he was posted, much less
how strong he was." " Undoubtedly," naively adds
the journal/' a rare case in such a situation."

Meanwhile the work of fortifying the camp was
continued. A place cfarmes was laid out in front of
the regiments, and fortified with heavy batteries. Dur-
ing the night of the 2ist, considerable shouting was
heard in the American camp. This, accompanied by
the firing of cannon, led the British to believe that
some holiday was being celebrated. Again, in the
night of the 23d, more noise was heard in the same
direction. " This time, however," says the journal of
another officer, " it may have proceeded from work-
ing parties, as the most common noise was the rat-
tling of chains." On the 28th, a captured cornet,
who had been allowed by Gates to return to the
British camp for five days, gave an explanation of the
shouting heard on the night of the 2ist. This was
that General Lincoln had attempted to surprise
4

26 Introduction.

Ticonderoga, and, though unsuccessful, had captured
four companies of the Fifty-third, together with a
ship and one bateau. Thus Burgoyne was indebted
to an enemy in his front for information respecting
his own posts in his rear.

But the action of the igth had essentially dimin-
ished his strength, and his situation began to grow
critical. His dispatches were intercepted, and his
communications with Canada cut off by the seizure
of the posts at the head of Lake George. The pick-
ets were more and more molested ; the army was
weakened by the sick and wounded, and the enemy
swarmed on its rear and flanks, threatening the strong-
est positions. In fact, the army was as good as cut
off from its outposts, while, in consequence of its
close proximity to the American camp, the soldiers
had but little rest. The nights, also, where rendered
hideous by the howls of large packs of wolves that
were attracted by the partially buried bodies of those
slain in the action of the igth. On the ist of Octo-
ber a few English soldiers who were digging potatoes
in a field a short distance in the rear of headquarters,
and within the camp, were surprised by the enemy,
who suddenly issued from the woods and carried off
the men in the very faces of their comrades.

There were now only sufficient rations for sixteen
days, and foraging parties, necessarily composed of
a large number of men, were sent out daily. At
length Burgoyne was obliged to cut down the ordi-
nary rations to a pound of bread and a pound of meat ;

Introduction. 2 7

and as he had heard nothing from Clinton, he became
seriously alarmed. Accordingly, on the evening of
the 5th of October, he called a council of war. Riede-
sel and Eraser advised an immediate falling back to
their old position behind the Battenkil, Phillips de-
clined giving an opinion, and Burgoyne reserved his
decision until he had made a reconnoissance in force
" to gather forage and ascertain definitely the posi-
tion of the enemy, and whether it would be advisable
to attack him." Should the latter be the case, he
would, on the day following the reconnoissance, ad-
vance on the Americans with his entire army ; but if
not, he would march back to the Battenkil.

At ten o'clock on the morning of October 7, liquor
and rations having been previously issued to the army,
Burgoyne, with 1500 men, eight cannon, and two how-
itzers, started on his reconnaissance accompanied by
Generals Riedesel, Phillips, and Eraser. The Cana-
dians and Indians were sent ahead to make a diversion
in the rear of the Continentals, but they were speedily
discovered, and after a brisk skirmish of half an hour,
driven back. The British advanced in three columns
toward the left wing of the American position, en-
tered a wheat field about 200 rods southwest of the
site of the action of the igth, deployed into line, and
began cutting up wheat for forage. The grenadiers,
under Major Ackland, and the artillery, under Major
Williams, were stationed upon a gentle eminence.
The light infantry, skirted by a low ridge of land, and
under the Earl of Balcarras, was placed on the ex-

28 Introduction.

treme right. The "centre was composed of British
and German troops under Phillips and Riedesel. In
advance of the right wing General Fraser had com-
mand of a detachment of 500 picked men. The
movement having been seasonably discovered, the
centre advanced guard of the Americans beat to arms.
Colonel Wilkinson, Gate's adjutant-general, being at
head-quarters at the moment, was dispatched to ascer-
tain the cause of the alarm. He proceeded to within
sixty rods of the enemy, and, returning, informed
General Gates that they were foraging, attempting
also to reconnoitre the American left, and likewise,
in his opinion, offering battle. "What is the nature
of the ground, and what your opinion ? " asked Gates.
"Their front is open," Wilkinson replied, "and their
flanks rest on woods, under cover of which they may
be attacked ; their right is skirted by a height. I
would indulge them." " Well, then," rejoined Gates,
order on Morgan to begin the game." At his own
suggestion, however, Morgan was allowed to gain the
ridge on the enemy's right by a circuitous course,
while Poor's and Learned's brigades should attack
his left.

The movement was admirably executed. At half
past two o'clock in the afternoon, the New York and
New Hampshire troops marched steadily up the
slope of the knoll on which the British grenadiers
and the artillery under Ackland and Williams were
stationed. Poor had given them orders not to fire
until after the first discharge of the enemy, and for

Introduction. 29

a moment there was an awful stillness, each party
seeming to bid defiance to the other. At length the
artillerymen and grenadiers began the action by a
shower of grape and musket-balls, which had no other
effect than to break the branches of the trees over
the heads of the Americans, who, having thus re-
ceived the signal, rushed forward, firing, and opening
to the right and left. Then again forming on the
flanks of the grenadiers, they mowed them down at
every shot, until the top of the hill was gained.
Here a bloody and hand-to-hand struggle ensued,
which lasted about thirty minutes, when, Ackland,
being badly hurt, the grenadiers gave way, leaving
the ground thickly strewn with their dead and
wounded. In this dreadful conflict one field-piece
that had been taken and re-taken five times, finally
fell into the hands of the Americans.

Soon after Poor began the attack on the grena-
diers, a flanking party of British was discerned ad-
vancing through the woods upon which Colonel Cilley
was ordered to intercept them. As he approached
near to a brush fence the enemy rose from behind
and fired, but so hurriedly that only a few balls took
effect. The officer in command then ordered his men
to " fix bayonets, and charge the damned rebels."
Colonel Cilley, who heard this order, replied, " It
takes two to play that game. Charge, and we'll try
it ! " His regiment charged at the word, and firing a
volley in the faces of the British, caused them to flee,
leaving many of their number dead upon the field.

30 Introduction.

As soon as the action began on the British left,
Morgan, true to his purpose, poured down like a tor-
rent from the ridge that skirted the flanking party of
Fraser, and attacked them so vigorously as to force
them back to their lines; then, by a rapid movement
to the left, he fell upon the flank of the British right
with such impetuosity that it wavered and seemed on
the point of giving way. At this critical moment,
Major Dearborn arrived on the field with two regi-
ments of New England troops, and delivered so gall-
ing a fire upon the British that they broke and fled
in wild confusion. They were, however, quickly
rallied by Balcarras behind a fence in rear of their
first position, and led again into action. The Conti-
nentals next threw their entire force upon the centre,
commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Specht with 300
men. Specht, whose left flank had been exposed by
the retreating of the grenadiers, ordered the two
regiments of Rhetz and Hesse-Hanan to form a
curve, and, supported by the artillery, thus covered
his flank, which was in imminent danger. He main-
tained himself long and bravely in this precarious situ-
ation, and would have stood his ground still longer
had he not been separated from Balcarras in conse-
quence of the latter, through a misunderstanding of
Burgoyne's orders, taking up another position with
his light infantry. Thus Specht's right flank was as
much exposed as his left. The brunt of the action
now fell on the Germans, who alone had to sustain
the impetuous onset of the Americans.

Introduction. 3 1

Brigadier-General Eraser, who, up to this time, had
been stationed on the right, noticed the critical situa-
tion of the centre, and hurried to its succor with the
Twenty-fourth Regiment. Conspicuously mounted
on an iron-gray horse, he was all activity and vigilance,
riding from one part of the division to another, and
animating the troops by his example. Perceiving
that the fate of the day rested upon that officer,
Morgan, who with his riflemen, was immediately op-
posed to Eraser's corps, took a few of his sharp-
shooters aside, among whom was the celebrated
marksman " Tim " Murphy — men on whose precision
of aim he could rely — and said to them, " That gal-
lant officer yonder is General Eraser. I admire and
respect him, but it is necessary for our good that he
should die. Take your station in that cluster of
bushes and do your duty." Within a few moments a
rifle-ball cut the crupper of Eraser's horse, and another
passed through his horse's mane. Calling his atten-
tion to this, Eraser's aid said, " It is evident that you
are marked out for particular aim ; would it not be
prudent for you to retire from this place ? " Eraser
replied, " My duty forbids me to fly from danger."
The next moment he fell mortally wounded by a ball
from the rifle of Murphy, and was carried off the field
by two grenadiers.

Upon the fall of Eraser, dismay seized the British,
while a corresponding elation took possession of the
Americans, who, being reinforced at this juncture by
General Tenbroeck with 3000 New York militia,

32 Introduction.

pressed forward with still greater vehemence. Up
to this time Burgoyne had been in the thickest of
the fight, and now, finding himself in danger of being
surrounded, he abandoned his artillery, and ordered
a retreat to the " Great Redoubt." This retreat took
place exactly fifty-two minutes after the first shot was
fired, the enemy leaving all the cannon on the field,
except the two howitzers, with a loss of more than
400 men, and among them the flower of his officers,
viz., Fraser, Ackland, Williams, Sir Francis Clarke,
and many others.

The retreating British troops had scarcely entered
their lines, when Arnold, notwithstanding he had been
refused a command by Gates, placed himself at the
head of the Continentals, and, under a terrific fire of
grape and musket-balls, assaulted their works from
right to left. Mounted on a dark brown horse, he
moved incessantly at a full gallop over the field, giv-
ing orders in every direction ; sometimes in direct
opposition to those of the commander, at others
leading a platoon in person, and exposing himself to
the hottest fire of the enemy. " He behaved;" says
Samuel Woodruff, a sergeant in the battle, in a letter
to the late Colonel Stone, " more like a madman than
a cool and discreet officer;" But if it were " mad-
ness," judging from its effect there was " method in
it." With a part of Patterson's and Glover's brigades,
he attacked, with the ferocity of a tiger, the " Great
Redoubt," and encountering the light infantry of Bal-
carras, drove it at the point of the bayonet from a

In tro duct ion. 3 3

strong abatis into the redoubt itself. Then spurring
boldly on, exposed to the cross-fire of the two armies,
he darted to the extreme right of the British camp.

This right-flank defense of the enemy was occupied
by the Brunswick troops under Breyman, and con-
sisted of a breastwork of rails piled horizontally be-
tween perpendicular pickets, and extended 200 yards
across an open field to some high ground on the right,
where it was covered by a battery of two guns. The
interval from the left of this defense to the " Great
Redoubt" was intrusted to the care of the Canadian
Provincials. In front of the rail breastwork the
ground declined in a gentle slope of 120 yards, when
it sunk abruptly. The Americans had formed a line
under this declivity, and, covered breast-high, were
warmly engaged with the Germans, when, about sun-
set, Learned came up with his brigade in open col-
umn, with Colonel Jackson's regiment, then in com-
mand of Lieutenant-Governor Brooks, in front. On
his approach he inquired where he could "put zWwith
most advantage." A slack fire was just then ob-
served in that part of the enemy's line between the
Germans and light infantry, where were stationed
the Canadian Provincials, and Learned was accord-
ingly requested to incline to the right, and attack
that point.

This slack fire was owing to the fact that the larger

part of the Canadian companies belonging to the

skirmishing expedition of the morning were absent

from their places, part of them being in the u Great

5

34 Introduction.

Redoubt," and the others not having returned to their
position. Had they been in their places, it would
have been impossible, Riedesel thinks, for the left
flank of Breyman to have been surrounded. Be this
as it may, on the approach of Learned the Canadians
fled, leaving the German flank uncovered, and at the
same moment Arnold, arriving from his attack on the
" Great Redoubt," took the lead of Learned's brig-
ade, and passing through the opening left by the
Canadians, attacked the Brunswickers on their left
flank and rear with such success that the chivalric
Breyman was killed, and they themselves force to re-
treat, leaving the key of the British position in the
hands of the Americans. Lieutenant-Colonel Specht,
in the " Great Redoubt," hearing of this disaster,
hastily rallied four officers and fifty men, and started
in the growing dusk to retake the intrenchment. Un-
acquainted with the road, he met a pretended royal-
ist in the woods, who promised to lead him to Brey-
man's corps ; but his guide treacherously delivered
him into the hands of the Americans, by whom he
and the four officers were captured.

The advantage thus gained was retained by the
Americans, and darkness put an end to an action
equally brilliant and important to the Continental
arms. Great numbers of the enemy were killed, and
200 prisoners taken. Burgoyne himself narrowly
escaped, one ball having passed through his hat, and
another having torn his waistcoat. The American
loss was inconsiderable.

Introduction. 35

In their final retreat the Brunswickers turned and
delivered a parting volley, which killed Arnold's horse
and wounded the general in the same leg that had
been injured by a musket ball at the storming of
Quebec two years previously. It was at this moment,
while he was striving to extricate himself from his
saddle, that Major Armstrong rode up and delivered
to him an order from Gates, to return to camp, fearing
he "might do some rash thing." " He indeed," says
Mr. Lossing, " did a rash thing in the eyes of military
discipline ; he led troops to victory without an order
from his commander." " It is a curious fact," says
Sparks, "that an officer who really had not command
in the army was the leader of one of the most spirited
and important battles of the Revolution. His mad-
ness, or rashness, or whatever it may called, resulted
most fortunately for himself. The wound he received
at the moment of rushing into the very arms of dan-
ger and death added fresh lustre to his military glory,
and was a new claim to public favor and applause."
In the heat of the action he struck an officer on the
head with his sword and wounded him — an indignity
which might justly have been retaliated on the spot,
and in the most fatal manner. The officer did, in-
deed, raise his gun to shoot him, but he forbore, and
the next day, when he demanded redress, Arnold de-
clared his entire ignorance of the act, and expressed
his regret. Wilkinson ascribed his rashness to intoxi-
cation, but Major Armstrong, who, with Samuel
Woodruff, assisted in removing him from the field,

36 Introduction.

was satisfied that this was not the case. Others as-
cribed it to opium. This, however, is conjecture, un-
sustained by proofs of any kind, and consequently
improbable. His vagaries may, perhaps, be suffi-
ciently explained by the extraordinary circumstances
of wounded pride, anger, and desperation in which he
was placed. But his actions were certainly rash when
compared with " the stately method of the comman-
der-in-chief, who directed by orders from his camp
what his presence should have sanctioned in the field."
Indeed, the conduct of Gates does not compare
favorably either with that of his own generals or of his
opponent. While Arnold and Burgoyne were in the
hottest of the fight, boldly facing danger, and almost
meeting face to face, Gates, according to the state-
ment of his adjutant-general, was discussing the
merits of the Revolution with Sir Francis Clarke,
Burgoyne's aid-de-camp — who, wounded and a pris-
oner, was lying upon the commander's bed — seem-
ingly more intent upon winning the verbal than the
actual battle. A few days afterward Sir Francis died.
Gates has been suspected of a lack of personal
courage. He certainly looked forward to a possible
retreat, and while he can not be censured for guard-
ing against every emergency, he was not animated by
the spirit which led Cortez to burn his ships behind
him. At the beginning of the battle, Quartermaster-
General Lewis was directed to take eight men with
him to the field, to convey to Gates information from
time to time concerning the progress of the action.

Introduction. 3 7

At the same time the baggage trains were loaded
up, ready to move at a moment's warning. The first
information that arrived represented the British
troops to exceed the Americans, and the trains were
ordered to move on ; but by the time they were under
motion, more favorable news was received, and the
order was countermanded. Thus they continued
alternately to move on and halt, until the joyful news,
"The British have retreated!" rang through the
camp, and reaching the attentive ears of the teams-
ters, they all, with one accord, swung their hats and
gave three long and loud cheers. The glad tidings
spread so swiftly that, by the time the victorious
troops had returned to their quarters, the American
camp was thronged with inhabitants from the sur-
rounding country, and presented a scene of the
greatest exultation.

From the foregoing account it will be seen that
the term, " Battle of Bemus Heights," used to desig-
nate the action of October 7, is erroneous and calcu-
lated to mislead. The maps show that the second
engagement began on ground 200 rods southwest of
the site of the first (known as the " Battle of Free-
man's Farm"), and ended on the same ground on
which that action was fought. The only interest, in
fact, that attaches to Bemus Heights — fully one mile
and a quarter south of the battle-ground — is that
they were the headquarters of Gates during and a
short time previous to the battle. This action is
called variously the " Battle of Bemus Heights" and

38 Introduction.

"Saratoga." Properly, the two engagements should
be designated as the " First and Second Battles of
Saratoga."

On the morning of the 8th, before daybreak, Bur-
goyne left his position, now utterly untenable, and
defiled to the meadows by the river, where were his
supply trains ; but was obliged to delay his retreat
until the evening, because his hospital could not be
sooner removed. He wished also to avail himself of
the darkness. The Americans immediately moved
forward and took possession of the abandoned camp.
Burgoyne having concentrated his forces upon some
heights, which were strong by nature, and covered by
a ravine running parallel with the intrenchments of
his late camp, a random fire of artillery and small-
arms was kept up through the day, particularly on
the part of the German chasseurs and the Provin-
cials. These, stationed in coverts of the ravine, kept
up an annoying fire upon every one crossing their
line of vision, and it was by a shot from one of these
lurking parties that General Lincoln received a severe
wound in the leg while riding near the line. It was
evident, from the movements of the British, that they
were preparing to retreat; but the American troops,
having, in the delirium of joy consequent upon their
victory, neglected to draw and eat their rations -
being withal not a little fatigued with the two days'
exertions, fell back to their camp, which had been
left standing in the morning. Retreat was, indeed,
the only alternative left to the British commander,

Introduction* 39

since it was now quite certain that he could not cut
his way through the American army, and his supplies
were reduced to a short allowance for five days.

Meanwhile, in addition to the chagrin of defeat, a
deep gloom pervaded the British camp. The gallant
and beloved Fraser — the life and soul of the army-
lay dying in the little house on the river bank occu-
pied by Baroness Riedesel. That lady has described
this scene with such unaffected pathos that we give
it in her own words, simply premising that on the
previous day she had expected Burgoyne, Phillips
and Fraser to dine with her after their return from
the reconnoissance. She says :

" About four o'clock in the afternoon, instead of
the guests who were to have dined with us, they
brought in to me upon a litter poor General Fraser,
mortally wounded. Our dining-table, which was
already spread, was taken away, and in its place they
fixed up a bed for the general. I sat in a corner of
the room, trembling and quaking. The noises grew
continually louder. The thought that they might
bring in my husband in the same manner was to me
dreadful, and tormented me incessantly. The general
said to the surgeon, l Do not conceal any thing from
me. Must I die?' The ball had gone through his
bowels, precisely as in the case of Major Harnage.
Unfortunately, however, the general had eaten a
hearty breakfast, by reason of which the intestines
were distended, and the ball had gone through them.
I heard him often, amidst his groans, exclaim, ' O

4o Introduction.

fatal ambition ! Poor General Burgoyne ! My poor
wife ! ' Prayers were read to him. He then sent a
message to General Burgoyne, begging that he would
have him buried the following day at six o'clock in
the evening, on the top of a hill which was a sort of
a redoubt. I knew no longer which way to turn.
The whole entry was filled with the sick, who were
suffering with camp sickness — a kind of dysentery.
I spent the night in this manner : at one time com-
forting Lady Ackland, whose husband was wounded
and a prisoner, and at another looking after my
children, whom I had put to bed. As for myself, I
could not go to sleep, as I had General Eraser and
all the other gentlemen in my room, and was con-
stantly afraid that my children would wake up and
cry, and thus disturb the poor dying man, who often
sent to beg my pardon for making me so much
trouble. About three o'clock in the morning they
told me that he could not last much longer. I had
desired to be apprised of the approach of this moment.
I accordingly wrapped up the children in the cover-
ings, and went with them into the entry. Early in
morning, at eight o'clock, he died.

"After they had washed the corpse, they wrapped
it in a sheet and laid it on a bedstead. We then
again came into the room, and had this sad sight
before us the whole day. At every instant, also,
wounded officers of my acquaintance arrived, and the
cannonade again began. A retreat was spoken of,
but there was not the least movement made toward

Introduction. 4 1

it. About four o'clock in the afternoon I saw the
new house which had been built for me, in flames ;
the enemy, therefore, were not far from us. We
learned that General Burgoyne intended to fulfil the
last wish of General Eraser, and to have him buried
at six o'clock in the place designated by him. This
occasioned an unnecessary delay, to which a part of
the misfortune of the army was owing.

" Precisely at six o'clock the corpse was brought
out, and we saw the entire body of generals with
their retinues assisting at the obsequies. The
English chaplain, Mr. Brudenell, performed the
funeral services. The cannon-balls flew continually
around and over the party. The American general,
Gates, afterward said that if he had known that it
was a burial, he would not have allowed any firing in
that direction. Many cannon-balls also flew not far
from me, but I had my eyes fixed upon the hill, where
I distinctly saw my husband in the midst of the
enemy's fire, and therefore I could not think of my own
danger." " Certainly," says General Riedesel, in his
journal, "it was a real military funeral — one that
was unique of its kind."

General Burgoyne has himself described this
funeral with his usual eloquence and felicity of ex-
pression : " The incessant cannonade during the
solemnity ; the steady attitude and unaltered voice
with which the chaplain officiated, though frequently
covered with dust, which the shot threw up on all
sides of him ; the mute but expressive mixture of
6

42 Introduction.

sensibility and indignation upon every countenance
-these objects will remain to the last of life upon
the mind of every man who was present. The grow-
ing duskiness added to the scenery, and the whole
marked a character of that juncture that would make
one of the finest subjects for the pencil of a master
that the field ever exhibited. To the canvass, and to
the faithful page of a more important historian, gal-
lant friend ! I consign thy memory. There may thy
talents, thy manly virtues, their progress and their
period, find due distinction ; and long may they sur-
vive, long after the frail record of my pen shall be
forgotten ! "

As soon as the funeral services were finished and
the grave closed, an order was issued that the army
should retreat as soon as darkness had set in ; and
the commander who, in the beginning of the campaign,
had vauntingly uttered in general orders that memor-
able sentiment, " Britons never go back," was now
compelled to steal away in the night, leaving his
hospital, containing upward of 400 sick and wounded,
to the mercy of a victorious and hitherto despised
enemy. Gates in this, as in all other instances, ex-
tended to his adversary the greatest humanity.

The army began its retrograde movement at nine
o'clock on the evening of the 8th, in the midst of a
pouring rain, Riedesel leading the van, and Phillips
bringing up the rear with the advanced corps.

In this retreat the same lack of judgment on the
part of Burgoyne is apparent. Had that general, as

Introduction. 43

Riedesel and PhiHips advised, fallen immediately
back across the Hudson, and taken up his former
position behind the Battenkil, not only would his
communications with Lake George and Canada have
been restored, but he could at his leisure have
awaited the movements of Clinton. Burgoyne, how-
ever, having arrived at Dovogat two hours before
daybreak on the morning of the Qth, gave the order
to halt, greatly to the surprise of his whole army.
"Every one," says the journal of Reidesel, "was,
notwithstanding, even then of the opinion that the
army would make but a short stand, merely for its
better concentration, as all saw that haste was of the
utmost necessity, if they would get out of a dangerous
trap." At this time the heights of Saratoga, com-
manding the ford across Fish Creek, were not yet
occupied by the Americans in force, and up to seven
o'clock in the morning the retreating army might
easily have reached that place and thrown a bridge
across the Hudson. General Fellows, who, by the
orders of Gates, occupied the heights at Saratoga
opposite the ford, was in an extremely critical situa-
tion. On the night of the 8th, Lieutenant-Colonel
Sutherland, who had been sent forward to reconnoitre,
crossed Fish Creek, and, guided by General Fel-
lows's fires, found his camp so entirely unguarded
that he marched round it without being hailed. He
then returned, and, reporting to Burgoyne, entreated
permission to attack Fellows with his regiment, but
was refused. " Had not Burgoyne halted at Dovo-

44 Introduction.

gat," says Wilkinson, "he must have reached Sara-
toga before day, in which case Fellows would have
been cut up, and captured or dispersed, and Bur-
goyne's retreat to Fort George would have been
unobstructed. As it was, however, Burgoyne's army
reached Saratoga just as the rear of our militia was
ascending the opposite bank of the Hudson, where
they took post and prevented its passage." Bur-
goyne, however, although within half an hour's march
of Saratoga, gave the surprising order that " the
army should bivouac in two lines and await the day."
Mr. Bancroft ascribes this delay to the fact that
Burgoyne "was still clogged with his artillery and
baggage, and that the night was dark, and the road
weakened by rain." But, according to the universal
testimony of all the manuscript journals extant, the
road, which up to this time was sufficiently strong for
the passage of the baggage and artillery trains, be-
came, during the halt, so bad by the continued rain
that when the army again moved, at four o'clock in
the afternoon, it was obliged to leave behind the
tents and camp equipage, which fell most opportunely
into the hands of the Americans. Aside, however,
from this, it is a matter of record that the men,
through their officers, pleaded with Burgoyne to be
allowed to proceed notwithstanding the storm and
darkness, while the officers themselves pronounced
the delay " madness." But whatever were the motives
of the English general, this delay lost him his army,
and, perhaps, the British crown her American colonies.

Introduction, 45

During the halt at Dovogat's, there occurred one
of those incidents which relieve with fairer lights and
softer tints the gloomy picture of war. Lady Harriet
Ackland had, like the Baroness Riedesel, accom-
panied her husband to America, and gladly shared
with him the vicissitudes of campaign life. Major
Ackland was a rough, blunt man, but a gallant soldier
and devoted husband, and she loved him dearly.
Ever since he had been wounded and taken prisoner
his wife had been greatly distressed, and it had re-
quired all the comforting attentions of the baroness
to reassure her. As soon as the army halted, by the
advice of the latter, she determined to visit the
American camp and implore the permission of its
commander to join her husband, and by her presence
alleviate his sufferings. Accordingly, on the gth,
she requested permission of Burgoyne to depart.
" Though I was ready to believe," says that general,
" that patience and fortitude in a supreme degree
were to be found, as well as every other virtue, under
the most tender forms, I was astonished at this pro-
posal. After so long an agitation of spirits, exhausted
not only for want of rest, but absolutely want of food,
drenched in rains for twelve hours together, that a
woman should be capable of such an undertaking as
delivering herself to an enemy, probably in the night,
and uncertain of what hands she might fall into, ap-
peared an effort above human nature. The assist-
ance I was enabled to give was small indeed. All I
could furnish to her was an open boat, and a few

46 Introduction.

lines, written upon dirty, wet paper, to General Gates,
recommending her to his protection."*

In the midst of a driving autumnal storm, Lady
Ackland set out at dusk, in an open boat, for the
American camp, accompanied by Mr. Brudenell the
chaplain, her waiting-maid, and her husband's valet.
At ten o'clock they reached the American advanced
guard, under the command of Major Henry Dear-
born. Lady Ackland herself hailed the sentinel, and
as soon as the bateau struck the shore, the party were
immediately conveyed into the log-cabin of the major,
who had been ordered to detain the flag until the
morning, the night being exceedingly dark, and the
quality of the lady unknown. Major Dearborn gal-
lantly gave up his room to his guest, a fire was kindled,
and a cup of tea provided, and as soon as Lady Ack-
land made herself known, her mind was relieved from
its anxiety by the assurance of her husband's safety.
"I visited," says Adjutant-General Wilkinson, "the
guard before sunrise. Lady Ackland's boat had put
off, and was floating down the stream to our camp,
where General Gates, whose gallantry will not be
denied, stood ready to receive her with all the ten-
derness and respect to which her rank and condition
gave her a claim. Indeed, the feminine figure, the
benign aspect, and polished manners of this charm-
ing woman were alone sufficient to attract the sym-

h These " lines " are preserved in the archives of
the New York Historical Society.

Introduction. 47

pathy of the most obdurate ; but if another motive
could have been wanting to inspire respect, it was
furnished by the peculiar circumstances of Lady Har-
riet, then in that most delicate situation which can
not fail to interest the solicitudes of every being pos-
sessing the form and feelings of a man."

On the evening of the gth the main portion of the
drenched and weary army forded Fish Creek, waist
deep, and bivouacked in a wretched position in the
open air on the opposite bank. Burgoyne remained
on the south side of the creek, with Hamilton's bri-
gade as a guard, and passed the night in the mansion
of General Schuyler. The officers slept on the ground
with no other covering than oil cloth. Nor did their
wives fare better. " I was wet," says the Baroness
Riedesel, "through and through by the frequent
rains, and was obliged to remain in this condition the
entire night, as I had no place whatever where I could
change my linen. I therefore seated myself before
a good fire and undressed my children, after which
we laid down together upon some straw. I asked
General Phillips, who came up to where we were, why
we did not continue our retreat while there was yet
time, as my husband had pledged himself to cover it,
and bring the army through. ' Poor woman,' an-
swered he, ' I am amazed at you. Completely wet
through, have you still the courage to wish to go
further in this weather? Would that you were our
commanding general ! He halts because he is tired,
and intends to spend the night here, and give us a

48 Introduction.

supper.' " Burgoyne, however, would not think of a
further advance that night ; and while his army were
suffering from cold and hunger, and every one was
looking forward to the immediate future with appre-
hension, "the illuminated mansion of General Schuy-
ler," says the Brunswicky<?&r»fl/, "rang with singing,
laughter, and the jingling of glasses. There Bur-
goyne was sitting with some merry companions at a
dainty supper, while the Champagne was flowing.
Near him sat the beautiful wife of an English com-
missary, his mistress. Great as the calamity was, the
frivolous general still kept up his orgies. Some were
even of opinion that he had merely made that inex-
cusable stand for the sake of passing a merry night.
Riedesel thought it his duty to remind his general of
the danger of the halt, but the latter returned all sorts
of evasive answers." This statement is corroborated
by the Baroness Riedesel, who also adds: " The
following day General Burgoyne repaid the hospi-
table shelter of the Schuyler mansion by burning it,
with its valuable barns and mills, to the ground, un-
der pretense that he might be better able to cover
his retreat, but others say out of mean revenge on
the American general."

But the golden moment had fled. On the follow-
ing morning, the loth, it was discovered that the
Americans, under Fellows, were in possession of the
Battenkil, on the opposite side of the Hudson; and
Burgoyne, considering it too hazardous to attempt
the passage of the river, ordered the army to occupy

Introduction. 49

the same quarters on the heights of Saratoga which
they had used on first crossing the river on the i3th
of September. At the same time he sent ahead a
working party to open a road to Fort Edward, his
intention being to continue his retreat along the
west bank of the Hudson to the front of that fort,
force a passage across, and take possession of the
post. Colonel Cochran, however, had already gar-
risoned it with 200 men, and the detachment hastily
fell back upon the camp.

Meanwhile General Gates, who had begun the
pursuit at noon of the loth with his main army,
reached the high ground south of Fish Creek at
four the same afternoon. The departure of Bur-
goyne's working party for Fort Edward led him to
believe that the entire British army were in full re-
treat, having left only a small guard to protect their
baggage. Acting upon this impression, he ordered
Nixon and Glover, with their brigades, to cross the
creek early the next morning under cover of the fog,
which at this time of year usually prevails till after
sunrise, and attack the British camp. The English
general had notice of this plan, and placing a battery
in position, he posted his troops in ambush behind
the thickets along the banks of the creek, and con-
cealed also by the fog, awaited the attack, confident
of victory. At early daylight Morgan, who had
again been selected to begin the action, crossed the
creek with his men on a raft of floating logs, and
falling in with a British picket, was fired upon, losing
7

50 Introduction.

a lieutenant and two privates. This led him to be-
lieve that the main body of the enemy had not
moved; in which case, the creek in his rear, en-
veloped by a dense fog, and unacquainted with the
ground, he felt his position to be most critical.

Meanwhile the whole army advanced as far as the
south bank of the creek, and halted. Nixon, how-
ever, who was in advance, had already crossed the
stream near its confluence with the Hudson, and cap-
tured a picket of sixty men and a number of bateaux,
and Glover was preparing to follow him, when a
deserter from the enemy confirmed the suspicions of
Morgan. This was corroborated, a few moments

O '

afterward, by the capture of a reconnoitring party of
thirty-five men by the advanced guard, under Captain
Goodale, of Putnam's regiment, who, discovering
them through the fog just as he neared the opposite
bank, charged, and took them without firing a gun.
Gates was at this time at his head-quarters, a mile
and a half in the rear; and before intelligence could
be sent to him, the fog cleared up, and exposed the
entire British army under arms. A heavy fire of
artillery and musketry was immediately opened upon
Nixon's brigade, and they retreated in considerable
disorder across the creek.*

General Learned had in the mean time reached
Morgan's corps with his own and Patterson's brig-

* The precise spot of this retreat is where the
bridge across Fish Creek leads to Victory Mills,
about where the cars stop at Victory Station.

Introduction. 5 1

ades, and was advancing rapidly to the attack in
obedience to a standing order issued the day before,
that, " in case of an attack against any point, whether
in front, flank, or rear, the troops are to fall upon the
enemy at all quarters." He had arrived within 200
yards of Burgoyne's battery, and in a few moments
more would have been engaged at great disadvant-
age, when Wilkinson reached him with the news that
the right wing, under Nixon, had given way, and
that it would be prudent to retreat. The brave old
general hesitated to comply. " Our brethren," said
he, " are engaged on the right, and the standing or-
der is to attack" In this dilemma Wilkinson ex-
claimed to one of Gate's aids, standing near, " Tell
the general that his own fame and the interests of
the cause are at hazard — that his presence is neces-
sary with the troops." Then, turning to Learned, he
continued, " Our troops on the right have retired,
and the fire you hear is from the enemy. Although
I have no orders for your retreat, I pledge my life
for the general's approbation." By this time several
field officers had joined the group, and a consultation
being held, the proposition to retreat was approved.
Scarcely had they faced about, when the enemy, who,
expecting their advance, had been watching their
movements with shouldered arms, fired, and killed an
officer and several men before they made good their
retreat.

The ground occupied by the two armies after this
engagement resembled a vast amphitheatre, the

52 Introduction.

British occupying the arena, and the Americans the
elevated surroundings. Burgoyne's camp, upon the
meadows and the. heights of Saratoga north of Fish
Creek, was fortified, and extended half a mile pa-
rallel with the river, most of its heavy artillery being
on an elevated plateau northeast of the village of
Schuylerville. On the American side Morgan and
his sharp-shooters were posted on still higher ground
west of the British, extending along their entire rear.
On the east or opposite bank of the Hudson, Fellows,
with 3000 men, was strongly intrenched behind heavy
batteries, while Gates, with the main body of Conti-
nentals, lay on the high ground south of Fish Creek
and parallel with it. On the north, Fort Edward
was held by Stark with 2000 men, and between that
post and Fort George, in the vicinity of Glenn's Falls,
the Americans had a fortified camp ; while from the
surrounding country large bodies of yeomanry flocked
in and voluntarily posted themselves up and down the
river. The " trap " which Riedesel had foreseen was
already sprung!

The Americans, impatient of delay, urged Gates
to attack the British camp ; but that general, now
assured that the surrender of Burgoyne was only a
question of time, and unwilling needlessly to sacrifice
his men, refused to accede to their wishes, and quietly
awaited the course of events.

The beleaguered army was now constantly under
fire both on its flanks and rear and in front. The
outposts were continually engaged with those of the

Introduction. 5 3

Americans, and many of the patrols, detached to keep
up communication between the centre and right wing,
were taken prisoners. The captured bateaux were of
great use to the Americans, who were now enabled
to transport troops across the river at pleasure, and
re-enforce the posts on the road to Fort Edward.
Every hour the position of the British grew more
desperate, and the prospect of escape less. There
was no place of safety for the baggage, and the ground
was covered with dead horses that had either been
killed by the enemy's bullets or by exhaustion, as
there had been no forage for four days. Even for
the wounded there was no spot that could afford a
safe shelter while the surgeon was binding up their
wounds. The whole camp became a scene of con-
stant fighting. The soldier dared not lay aside his
arms night or day, except to exchange his gun for the
spade when new intrenchments were to be thrown
up. He was also debarred of water, although close
to Fish Creek and the river, it being at the hazard of
life in the daytime to procure any, from the number
of sharp-shooters Morgan had posted in trees, and at
night he was sure to be taken prisoner if he attempted
it. The sick and wounded would drag themselves
along into a quiet corner of the woods, and lie down
and die upon the damp ground. Nor were they safe
even here, since every little while a ball would come
crashing down among the trees. The few houses that
were at the foot of the heights were nearest to the
fire from Fellows's batteries, notwithstanding which

54 Introduction.

the wounded offcers and men crawled thither, seeking
protection in the cellars.

In one of these cellars the Baroness Riedesel
ministered to the sufferers like an angel of help and
comfort. She made them broth, dressed their wounds,
purified the atmosphere by sprinkling vinegar on hot
coals, and was ever ready to perform any friendly
service, even those from which the sensitive nature of
a woman will recoil. Once, while thus engaged, a
furious cannonade was opened upon the house, under
the impression that it was the head-quarters of the
English commander. " Alas! " says Baroness Riedesel,
"it harbored none but wounded soldiers or women!"
Eleven cannon-balls went through the house, and
those in the cellar could plainly hear them crashing
through the walls overhead. One poor fellow, whose
leg they were about to amputate in the room above,
had his other leg taken off by one of these cannon-
balls in the very midst of the operation. The greatest
suffering was experienced by the wounded from thirst,
which was not relieved until a soldier's wife volun-
teered to bring water from the river. This she con-
tinued to do with safety, the Americans gallantly
witholding their fire whenever she appeared.

Meanwhile order grew more and more lax, and the
greatest misery prevailed throughout the entire army.
The commissaries neglected to distribute provisions
among the troops, and although there were cattle still
left, no animal had been killed. More than thirty
officers came to the baroness for food, forced to this

\

Introduction. 5 5

step from sheer starvation, one of them, a Canadian,
being so weak as to be unable to stand. She divided
among them all the provisions at hand, and having
exhausted her store without satisfying them, in an
agony of despair she called to Adjutant-General
Petersham, one of Burgoyne's aids, who chanced to
be passing at the time, and said to him, passionately,
" Come and see for yourself these officers who have
been wounded in the common cause, and are now in
want of every thing that is due them ! It is your
duty to make a representation of this to the general."
Soon afterward Burgoyne himself came to the
Baroness Riedesel and thanked her for reminding him
of his duty. In reply she apologized for meddling
with things she well knew were out of a woman's
province ; still, it was impossible, she said for her to
keep silence when she saw so many brave men in
want of food, and had nothing more to give them.

On the afternoon of the I2th Burgoyne held a con-
sultation with Riedesel, Phillips, and the two briga-
diers, Hamilton and Gall. Riedesel suggested that
the baggage should be left, and a retreat begun on
the west side of the Hudson ; and as Fort Edward
had been re-enforced by a strong detachment of the
Americans, he further proposed to cross the river four
miles above that fort, and continue the march to
Ticonderoga through the woods, leaving Lake George
on the right — a plan which was then feasible, as the
road on the west bank of the river had not yet been
occupied by the enemy. This proposition was ap-

56 Introduction.

proved, and an order was issued that the retreat should
be begun by ten o'clock that night. But when every
thing was in readiness for the march, Burgoyne
suddenly changed his mind, and postponed the move-
ment until the next day, when an unexpected man-
oeuvre of the Americans made it impossible. During
the night the latter, crossing the river on rafts near
the Battenkil, erected a heavy battery on an eminence
opposite the mouth of that stream, and on the left
flank of the army, thus making the investment com-
plete.

Burgoyne was now entirely surrounded ; the deser-
tions of his Indians and Canadian allies, and the
losses in killed and wounded, had reduced his army
one-half; there was not food sufficient for five days;
and not a word had been received from Clinton. Ac-
cordingly, on the 1 3th, he again called a general
council of all his officers, including the captains of
companies. The council were not long in deciding
unanimously that a treaty should at once be opened
with General Gates for an honorable surrender, their
deliberations being doubtless hastened by several
rifle-balls perforating the tent in which they were
assembled, and an 1 8-pound cannon-ball sweeping
across the table at which Burgoyne and his generals
were seated.

The following morning, the i4th, Burgoyne pro-
posed a cessation of hostilities until terms of capitu-
lation could be arranged. Gates demanded an un-
conditional surrender, which was refused ; but he

Introduction. 57

finally agreed, on the i5th, to more moderate terms,
influenced by the possibility of Clinton's arrival at
Albany. During the night of the i6th a Provincial
officer arrived unexpectedly in the British camp, and
stated that he had heard through a third party, that
Clinton had captured the forts on the Hudson High-
lands, and arrived at Esopus eight days previously,
and further, that by this time he was very likely at
Albany. Burgoyne was so encouraged by this news,
that, as the articles of capitulation were not yet signed,
he resolved to repudiate the informal agreement with
Gates. The latter, however, was in no mood for
temporizing, and being informed of the new phase of
affairs, he drew up his troops in order of battle at
early dawn of the next day, the lyth, and informed
him in plain terms that he must either sign the treaty
or prepare for immediate battle. Riedesel and Phil-
lips added their persuasions, representing to him that
the news just received was mere hearsay, but even if
it were true, to recede now would be in the highest
degree dishonorable. Burgoyne thereupon yielded
a reluctant consent, and the articles of capitulation
were signed at nine o'clock the same morning.

They provided that the British were to march out
with the honors of war, and to be furnished a free
passage to England under promise of not again serv-
ing against the Americans. These terms were not
carried out by Congress, which acted in the matter
very dishonorably, and most of the captured army,
with the exception of Burgoyne, Riedesel, Phillips, and
8

58 Introduction.

Hamilton, were retained as prisoners while the war
lasted. The Americans obtained by this victory, at
a very critical period, an excellent train of brass artil-
lery, consisting of forty-two guns of various calibre,
4647 muskets, 400 sets of harness and a large supply
of ammunition. The prisoners numbered 5804, and
the entire American force at the time of the surren-
der, including regulars (Continentals) and militia,
was 17,091 effective men.

At eleven o'clock on the morning of the 1 7th, the
royal army left their fortified camp, and formed in
line on the meadow just north of Fish Creek, at its
junction with the Hudson. Here they left their
cannon and small-arms. With a longing eye the
artillery-man looked for the last time upon his faithful
gun, parting with it as from his bride, and that forever.
With tears trickling down his bronzed cheeks, the
bearded grenadier stacked his musket to resume it
no more. Others in their rage, knocked off the
butts of their arms, and the drummers stamped their
drums to pieces.

Immediately after the surrender, the British took
up their march for Boston, whence they expected to
embark, and bivouacked the first night at their old
encampment at the foot of the hill where Fraser was
buried. As they debouched from the meadow, hav-
ing deposited their arms, they passed between the
Continentals, who were drawn up in parallel lines.
But on no face did they see exultation. " As we
passed the American army," writes Lieutenant An-

Introduction. 59

bury, one of the captured officers, and bitterly pre-
judiced against his conquerers, " I did not observe the
least disrespect, or even a taunting look, but all was
mute astonishment and pity; and it gave us no little
comfort to notice this civil deportment to a captured
enemy, unsullied with the exulting air of victors."

The English general having expressed a desire to
be formally introduced to Gates, Wilkinson arranged
an interview a few moments after the capitulation.
In anticipation of this meeting, Burgoyne had be-
stowed the greatest care upon his whole toilet. He
had attired himself in full court dress, and wore costly
regimentals and a richly decorated hat with stream-
ing plumes. Gates, on the contrary, was dressed
merely in a plain blue overcoat, which had upon it
scarcely any thing indicative of his rank. Upon the
two generals first catching a glimpse of each other,
they stepped forward simultaneously, and advanced
until they were only a few steps apart, when they
halted. The English general took off his hat, and
making a polite bow, said, " The fortune of war,
General Gates, has made me your prisoner." The
American general, in reply, simply returned his greet-
ing, and said, " I shall always be ready to testify that
it has not been through any fault of your excellency."
As soon as the introduction was over, the other cap-
tive generals repaired to the tent of Gates, where
they were received with the utmost courtesy, and
with the consideration due to brave but unfortunate
men.

60 Introduction.

After Riedesel had been presented to Gates, he
sent for his wife and children. It is to this circum-
stance that we owe the portraiture of a lovely trait
in General Schuyler's character. " In the passage
through the American camp," the baroness writes,
" I observed, with great satisfaction, that no one cast
at us scornful glances ; on the contrary, they all
greeted me, even showing compassion on their
countenances at seeing a mother with her little chil-
dren in such a situation. I confess I feared to come
into the enemy's camp, as the thing was so entirely
new to me. When I approached the tents, a noble look-
ing man came toward me, took the children out of
the wagon, embraced and kissed them, and then, with
tears in his eyes, helped me also to alight. He then
led me to the tent of General Gates, with whom I
found Generals Burgoyne and Philips, who were upon
an extremely friendly footing with him. Presently
the man, who had received me so kindly, came up
and said to me, 'It may be embarrassing to you to
dine with all these gentlemen ; come now with your
children into my tent, where I will give you, it is true,
a frugal meal, but one that will be accompanied by
the best of wishes.' 'You are certainly,' answered I,
' a husband and a father, since you show me so much
kindness.' I then learned that he was the American
General Schuyler."

* In Randall's Life of Jefferson, we have a picture
of the Riedesels in their temporary Virginia home.
As this is not given in my translation of Madame

Introduction. 6 1

The English and German generals dined with the
American commander in his tent on boards laid across
barrels. The dinner, which was served up in four
dishes, consisted only of ordinary viands, the Ameri-
cans at this period being accustomed to plain and
frugal meals. The drink on this occasion was cider,
and rum mixed with water. Burgoyne appeared in
excellent humor. He talked a great deal, and spoke
very flatteringly of the Americans, remarking, among
other things, that he admired the number, dress, and
discipline of their army, and above all, the decorum

(Baroness) Riedesel's Letters, I here quote it in full
-showing, as it does, the personal appearance of
that lady — to which, she would not, of course, advert
in her " Letters : "

" General Riedesel rented and lived at Colle, the
seat of Philip Mazzai, a short distance from the eastern
base of Monticello. Himself and theBaroness
were frequent visitors of Mr. Jefferson — the latter
especially, who in every domestic strait (not an ex-
traordinary thing with an ill-regulated commissariat
and four thousand extra mouths) applied to him with
the freedom of an old neighbor. Her Amazonian
stature and practice of riding like a man, greatly as-
tonished the Virginian natives ; but tradition repre-
sents her as a cordial, warm-hearted, highly intelligent,
and, withal, handsome woman, whose moderate pen-
chant for gossip, and not unfrequent blunders in talk-
ing and pronouncing English, only contributed to the
amusingness of her lively conversation, Were we a
racounteur, we could give some specimens of these
blunders, with which in after years Mr. Madison was
' wont to set the table in a roar.'

62 Introduction.

and regularity that were observed. " Your fund of
men," he said to Gates, "is inexhaustible; like the
Hydra's head, when cut off, seven more spring up in
its stead." He also proposed a toast to General
Washington — an attention that Gates returned by
drinking the health of the King of England. The
conversation on both sides was unrestrained, affable,
and free. Indeed, the conduct of Gates throughout,
after the terms of the surrender had been adjusted,
was marked with equal delicacy and magnanimity, as
Burgoyne himself admitted in a letter to the Earl of
Derby. In that letter the captive general particularly
mentioned one circumstance, which, he said, exceeded
all he had ever seen or read of on a like occasion.
It was that when the British soldiers had marched
out of their camp to the place where they were to
pile their arms, not a man of the American troops was
to be seen, General Gates having ordered the whole
army out of sight, that not one of them should be a
spectator of the humiliation of the British troops.
This was a refinement of delicacy and of military
generosity and politeness, reflecting the highest credit
upon the conqueror.

As the company rose from table, the royal army
filed past on their march to the seaboard. There-
upon, by preconcerted arrangement, the two generals
stepped out, and Burgoyne, drawing his sword, pre-
sented it, in the presence of the two armies, to General
Gates. The latter received it with a courteous bow,
and immediately returned it to the vanquished general.

VISIT OF THE MARQUIS DE CHASTELLUX,* TO

THE BATTLE AND SURRENDER GROUNDS,

IN DECEMBER, 1780.

Chastellux, while at Albany, accepts the invitation
of General Schuyler, to visit, under his escort, the
Saratoga Battle Grounds, and thus writes :

* * At dinner, all of the company who were to be
of the Saratoga party, collected at my lodgings, and
we went afterwards to General Schuyler's to settle
matters for our journey ; and, in consequence, set out
the next day at sunrise in five different sledges.
General Schuyler took me in his own. We passed
the Mohawk river on the ice, a mile above the Cataract
[Cohoes falls]. We went a little astray in the woods
we had to pass to reach the high-road. We came
into it between Half -Moon and Stillwater. A mile

* Francois Jean, Marquis de Chastellux, French
Author, b. Paris, 1734, d. there October 28, 1788.
He entered the army when fifteen years of age, and
distinguished himself as Colonel of a regiment in the
" Seven Years War." " He accompanied Rocham-
beau to America in 1780, as a Major General, and
gained the affection of Washington, by his amiability
of character; and on his return to France, he was made
a Field Marshal. After the capture of Cornwallis,

64 Marquis de Chastellux s Letter.

thence I saw on the left an opening in the wood, and
a pretty extensive plain, below which runs a creek,
and observed to General Schuyler that there must be
a good position there. He told me I was not de-
ceived, and that it had been reconnoitered for that
purpose in case of need. The creek is called An-
thony's Rill, the word ^ riir amongst the Dutch
having the same signification as creek with the
Americans.* Three miles further on we traversed a
hamlet called Stillwater Landing-Place, for it is here

he obtained leave of absence which he used in travel-
ing extensively in the United States. His observa-
tions and adventures during this time, were the basis
of his " Voyage dans 1'Amerique Septentrionale dans
les annees, 1780-2," (2 vols. Paris, 1786. English
translation by George Grieve, London, 1787.) A
portion of this work was set up by compositors on
the vessel which carried him back to France with
Rochambeau. The work contains notices of the
natural history of the country, interesting details of
the localities, and events of the war (of which the
above letter is an example) and observations on the
chief actors in it. Chastellux married a Miss
Plunket, a lady of Irish descent, the year before his
death. He was made a member of the French
Academy in 1775. Perhaps, it was as well that
Chastellux died in 1 788, before the " Reign of Terror "
had obtained full control, since, he would doubtless
have been guillotined together with his compatriot,
the Compte d'Estaing.

* Chastellux probably failed to catch the pronun-
ciation, as the word is kill, not rill.

Marquis de Chastelluxs Letter. 65

that boats coming down from Saratoga are obliged
to stop to avoid the rapids. Hence there is a port-
age of eight or ten miles to the place where the river
is navigable. I imagine the name of Stillwater is
derived from its tranquility here previous to the
commencement of the rapids.* General Schuyler
showed me some redoubts he had constructed to de-
fend the park where his boats and provisions were
collected, after the evacuation of Fort Anne and Fort

* A mill-stone now doing duty in Jno. B. New-
land's grist-mill has a history. It is a well-known
historical fact that at the time of Burgoyne's cam-
paign in this section the wheat crop was harvested
and was standing in shocks in the fields. As the
British advanced, Captain Palmer, grandfather of
John Patrick, Esq., and father of Ashbel Palmer,
conceived the idea that the mill-stone should not be
guilty of the treasonable act of furnishing aid and
comfort to the enemy. But it would not do to break
it, as it was the only stone in all this section at the
time ; and, besides, it came from foreign parts and
cost a deal of money. So a raft was constructed, and
during the still hours of the night the captain, with a
band of men, placed the stone on board the frail
craft and worked their way out over the rapids until
two-thirds of the Hudson was crossed, when they
deposited their load in a hole in the swift-running
water, at a depth of about ten feet. When the last
vestige of the once grand army had disappeared, the
stone was fished up from its watery bed, and at this
late day experienced millers pronounce it the cham-
pion stone in this vicinity. — Schuylerville Standard,
May 9, 1884.
9

66 Marquis de Chastelluxs Letter.

Edward. We stopped there to refresh our horses.
The general had given the rendezvous to a militia
officer, called Swang, who lives in this neighborhood,
and served in the army of General Gates. He put
me into his hands and continued his route to Sara-
toga, to prepare our reception. I presently got into
a sledge with my guide, and, at the end of three
miles, we saw two houses on the bank of the river.
It was here that General Gates had his right, and his
bridge of boats, defended by a redoubt on each bank.
We alighted to examine this interesting position,
which disappointed all the hopes of Burgoyne and
prepared his ruin. I shall attempt to give some idea
of it, which, though incomplete indeed, may throw
some light on the relations of General Burgoyne and
even serve to rectify his errors.

The eminences called Brearris Heights [Bemus's
Heights], whence this famous camp is named, are
only a part of those high grounds which extend along
the right bank of the Hudson, from the river Mo-
hawk to that of Saratoga. At the spot chosen by
General Gates for his position, they form, on the
side of the river, two different slopes, or terraces. In
mounting the first slope, are three redoubts placed
in parallel directions. In front of the last, on the
north side, is a little hollow, beyond which the ground
rises again, on which are three more redoubts, placed
nearly in the same direction as the former. In front
of them is a deep ravine which runs from the west,
in which is a small creek. This ravine takes its rise

Marquis de Ckastclluxs Letter. 67

in the woods, and all the ground on the right of it is
extremely thick set with wood. If you will now re-
turn upon your steps, place yourself upon the first
redoubts you spoke of, and mount to the second
slope proceeding to the westward, you will find, on
the most elevated platform, a large entrenchment
which was parallel with the river, and then turns to-
wards the north-west, where it terminates in some
pretty deep summits, which were likewise fortified by
small redoubts. To the left of these heights, and at
a place where the declivity becomes more gentle,
begins another entrenchment which turns towards
the west, and makes two or three angles, always car-
ried over the tops of the heights to the south-west.
Towards the north-west, you come out of the lines
to descend another platform, which presents a posi-
tion the more favorable, as it commands the sur-
rounding woods, and resists every thing which might
turn the left flank of the army. It is here that Ar-
nold was encamped with the advanced guard.

If you descend again from this height, proceeding
toward the north, you are presently in the midst of
woods near Freeman s Farm and on the ground
where the actions of the iQth of September, and the
7th of October happened.* I avoid the wordfatd of

*" Freeman's Farm," was owned at the time of
the Battle, by Isaac Leggett, and subsequently by
his son Ebenezer. The late Mrs. Mary Maxwell, of
Quaker Springs (mother of the late Anthony Max-
well, of Old Saratoga), was a young woman at the

68 Marquis de Chastelluxs Letter.

battle, for these two engagements were in the woods,
and on ground so intersected and covered, that it is
impossible either to conceive or discover the smallest
resemblance between it and the place given to the public,
by General Burgoyne* But what appears to me very

time of the battle. She lived with her father (Isaac
Leggett) on the battle-ground, but left and went to
Albany just before the action of the iQth of Septem-
ber took place. She saw Gates and Burgoyne ride
into that city side by side. Before leaving her home,
she, with her mother and sisters, had been summoned
into the presence of Gates and Arnold to learn if her
father, who was a Quaker and sympathized with the
King, had not sold provisions to the enemy. Re-
garding this she knew nothing and so declared.
Arnold, however, was disposed to doubt her word,
when, perceiving this, she replied: " If thee knows
better than I, why did thee ask me?" On which
Gates (always, notwithstanding his faults, a perfect
gentleman in all which that much abused term im-
plies) said: " Don't be too hard on the young
woman." When they left the farm, $300 in gold
was placed under one of the stones of the cellar-floor.
It was undisturbed when they returned a few months
afterward. Mrs. Maxwell lived to a great age, and
was to the last, distinguished for her remarkable
conversational powers. Indeed, it is remarkable how
many of the Revolutionary era lived to remarkable
ages. See on this point the late Dr. Draper's " Bat-
tle of King's Mountain.

* This is not accurate. A person familiar with
the ground, and with Burgoyne's maps before him,
would have no difficulty whatever. If this is so in
1895, how much more in 1780.

Marquis de Chastelluxs Letter. 69

clear is, that this general who was encamped about
four miles from the camp of Breams Heights, wishing
to approach and reconnoiter the avenues to it,
marched through the woods in four columns,* and
that having several ravines to pass, he made General
Fraser, with the advanced guard, turn them at their
origin; that two other columns traversed the ra-
vines and the woods, as well as they could, without
either communicating or materially waiting for each
other; that the left column, composed of artillery,
followed the course of the river, where the grounds
were level, and built bridges over the ravines and
rivulets, which are deeper on that side, as they all
terminate in the river ; that the engagement first be-
gan with the riflemen and American militia, who were
supported as necessity required, without any prior
disposition ; that the advanced guard and the right
column were the first engaged, and that the combat
lasted until the columns on the left arrived, that is to
say, till sunset; that the Americans then retired to
their camp, where they had taken care to convey their
wounded ; that the English advanced guard and the
right column greatly suffered, both one and the other
having been very long engaged in the woods without
any support.f

* This is correct. See my map in Burgoyne's
Campaign."

f The curious reader will find a detailed account
of this action in my " Burgoyne's Campaign."

jo Marquis de Chastelluxs Letter.

General Burgoyne purchased dearly the frivolous
honor of sleeping on the field of battle : he now en-
camped at Freeman's Farm, so near the American
camp that it was impossible for him to manoeuvre, so
that he found himself in the situation of a chess-
player who suffers himself to be state-mated.* In
this position he remained until the yth of October,
when, seeing his provisions expended, hearing nothing
of Clinton, and being too near the enemy to retreat
without danger, he tried a second attack and again
made an attempt for his advanced guard to turn the
left. The enemy, with whom the woods were filled,
penetrated his design, themselves turned the left
flank of the corps with theirs, put them to rout and
pursued them so far as to find themselves, without
knowing it, opposite the camp of the Germans. This
camp was situated en potence, and a little in the rear
of the line.f Arnold and Lincoln, animated with
success, attacked and carried the entrenchments ; both
of them had bought the victory at the price of their
blood ; each of them had a leg broke with a musquet
shotj I saw the spot where Arnold, uniting the

' This simile is not quite correct, as Burgoyne
received here his first check — ending in a checkmate
subsequently.

f Now known as " Burgoyne's Hill" — one of the
sites marked by a tablet by General J. Watts de
Peyster. See frontispiece.

JA mistake, which Heath, in his Memoirs, also falls
into. Lincoln was wounded the next day (the 8th)

Marquis de Chastelluxs Letter. 71

hardiness of a jockey with that of a soldier, leaped
his horse over the entrenchment of the enemy. It
was like all those of this country, a sort of parapet,
formed by the trunks of trees piled one upon another.
This action was very brisk, to which the fir trees
[pines] which are torn by musquet and cannon-shot,
will long be as testimony ; for the term of their ex-
istence seems as remote, as is the period of their
origin.

I continued reconnoitering here till night ; some-
times walking in the snow, where I sunk to the knees,
and sometimes travelling still less successfully in a
sledge, my conductor having taken care to overset
me, very gently indeed, in a great heap of snow.
After surveying Burgoyne's lines, I at length got
down to the high road, passing through a field where
he had established his hospital. We then travelled
more easily, and I got to Saratoga at seven in the
evening ; and after a severe and thirty miles journey,
we found good rooms, well warmed, an excellent sup-
per, and had a gay and agreeable conversation ; for
General Schuyler, like many European husbands, is
still more amiable when he is absent from his wife.
He gave us instructions for our next day's expedition.

The 3ist we got on horseback at eight o'clock, and

while reconnoitering the enemys' position. See my
Burgoynes campaign. It is true, however, that Lin-
coln was wounded in the leg — but the limb was not
broken.

72 Marquis de Chastelluxs Letter.

Mr. Schuyler conducted us himself to the camp occu-
pied by the English when General Burgoyne capitu-
lated. We could not have had a better guide, but he
was absolutely necessary for us in every respect, for
besides that this event happened before his eyes, and
that he was better able than anybody to give us an
account of it, no person but the proprietor of the
ground himself was able to conduct us safely through
the woods; the fences and entrenchments being cov-
ered a foot deep with snow.

In throwing your eyes upon the chart you will see
that Saratoga is situated upon the bank of a small
river [more properly creek], which comes from a lake
of that name and falls into the Hudson. On the
right bank of the Fish-Kill, the name of that little
river, stood formerly a handsome country-house, be-
longing to General Schuyler : a large farm depend-
ing on it, two or three saw-mills, a meeting-house and
three or four middling houses, composed all the
habitations of this celebrated place, the name of
which will be handed down to the latest posterity.
After the affair of the 7th of October, General Bur-
goyne began his retreat. He marched in the night
between the 8th and gth, but did not pass the creek
till the 1 3th, so much difficulty he had in dragging
his artillery, which he persisted in preserving, altho'
the greatest part of his horses were killed or dead
with hunger. He took four days, therefore, to retire
eight miles, which gave the Americans time to follow
him on the right bank of the Hudson, and to get be-

Marquis de Chastelluxs Letter. 73

fore him on the left bank, when they occupied in
force all the passages. General Burgoyne had
scarcely reached the other side of the creek before
he set fire to General Schuyler's house, rather from
malice than for the safety of his army,* since this

* In justice to Burgoyne, however, it may be well
on this point, to quote from his speech in the House
of Commons, in answer to a call upon him by Mr.
Wilkes, for explanation respecting the burning of the
country during the progress of the army under his
command :

"I am ignorant," said Burgoyne, "of any such
circumstance. I do not recollect more than one
accident by fire. I positively assert there was no
fire by order, or countenance of myself, or any other
officer, except at Saratoga. That district is the
property of Major-General Schuyler, of the American
troops; there were large barracks built by him, which
took fire the day after the army arrived on the
ground in their retreat ; and I believe, I need not
state any other proof of that matter being merely
accident, than that the barracks were then made use
of as my hospital, and full of sick and wounded sol-
diers. General Schuyler had likewise a very good
dwelling-house, great saw-mills, etc., to the value,
perhaps, of ten thousand pounds. A few days be-
fore the negotiation with General Gates, the enemy
had formed a plan to attack me ; a large column of
troops was approaching to pass the small river [Fish
Creek/not the Hudson into which it empties, is here
meant] preparatory to a general action, and was
entirely covered from the fire of my artillery by these
buildings. Sir, I avow that I gave the order to set
10

74 Marquis de Chastelluxs Letter.

house, situated in a bottom, could afford no advantage
to the Americans, and he left the farms [Sic, barn?]

them on fire ; and in a very short time the whole
property, I have described, was consumed. But, to
show that the person most deeply concerned in that
calamity, did not put the construction upon it which
it has pleased the honorable gentleman to do, I must
inform the House, that one of the first persons I saw,
after the Convention was signed, was General Schuy-
ler. I expressed to him my regret at the event
which had happened, and the reasons which occa-
sioned it. He desired me to think no more of it ;
said that the occasion justified it, according to the
principles and rules of war, and he should have done
the same, upon the same occasion, or words to that
effect. [*] He did more — he sent an Aide-de-Camp to
conduct me to Albany, in order, as he expressed it,
to procure me better quarters than a stranger might
be able to find. This gentleman conducted me to a
very elegant house, and to my great surprise, pre-
sented me to Mrs. Schuyler and her family ; and in
this general's house I remained during my whole
stay at Albany, with a table of more than twenty

[*] This was all the more praiseworthy on Schuy-
ler s part — since he lost the whole of his property
at Saratoga by this fire — the Continental Congress
(so far as I can ascertain) never having reimbursed
him one penny. Shameful, but true. In fact, every
thing goes to show that Schuyler was a true gentle-
man — this very fact, however, in the estimation of
the Continental Congress (composed of many pa-
triots, but, also, of many envious boors) was sufficient
to bring Schuyler into disrepute.

Marquis de Chastelluxs Letter. 75

standing, which is at present the only asylum for its

owner.*

It is here that Mr. Schuyler lodged us in some tem-
porary apartments he fitted up, until happier times

courses for me and my friends, and every other pos-
sible demonstration of hospitality; a situation, pain-
ful as it is true in point of sensibility at the time, but
which I now contemplate with some satisfaction, as
carrying undeniable testimony how little I deserved
the charges of the honorable gentleman."

* This shows, most conclusively, that the tradition
— still current — of General Schuyler's house having
been rebuilt, by Gates' soldiers in ten days after its
destruction by fire is entirely false. Schuyler, him-
self, also, in a letter to Congress, dated "Saratoga,
Nov. 4, 1777" (See N. Y. His. Col. for 1879, pg.
191) writes : " On the 2d inst. two British officers, on
their return to Canada, took shelter in a violent
storm of rain, in my little hut, the only remains of
all my buildings in this quarter. One was attached to
Gen. Carleton, the other to Gen. Burgoyne, etc."
Of course, if Schuyler's house had been rebuilt, he
would not have entertained the officers in a "hut !"
So much for tradition, which, unless, corroborated
by facts, written down at the time, is a very poor
guide to follow. At the same time, one of the most
prominent places of historical interest — so far as
pertains to the Revolutionary war — is Schuyler-
ville, and especially the " Schuyler Mansion." As
above hinted, the latter is situated about four hun-
dred feet from the one burned by Burgoyne, the first
foundation being on a line with the western bank of
the Champlain canal, the remainder of the substruc-

76 Marquis de Chastelluxs Letter.

allow him to build another house. The creek runs
between two steep ascents, the summits of which

ture being removed by the canal excavation. The
great road to the ford passed eastward of it. The
fording place was in that part of the Fish kill or
creek opposite the ruins of the burned buildings of
Raymond's steam saw mill, and a short distance east
of the aqueduct. The property had been inherited
by General Schuyler from his uncle, John Philip
Schuyler, who had been shot on the morning of the
29th of November, 1745, while heroically defending
his house from an attack of French and Indians.
Shortly after the declaration of peace between Eng-
land and France in 1763, Major Philip Schuyler (sub-
sequently General), visited his landed possessions at
Saratoga, in which he not only often entertained Ben-
jamin Franklin and other distinguished Americans,
but also hospitably received as his guests many of the
titled nobility of England and France. Although the
General had a large and comfortable residence in
Albany, his country house on the banks of the Fish
kill was more attractive to him and his family, and
here nine months during the year he was generally to
be found. The antiquarian finds in this roomy man-
sion, the main building having a frontage of sixty feet
and a depth of thirty-five feet, one of the most attrac-
tive collections of books, furniture, wares, relics and
curiosities to be found north of Albany. The verita-
ble skull of Thomas Lovelass is to be seen, who was
one of a party of five Tories and spies captured in
the neighborhood, and who having been tried and
condemned by a court-martial at the barracks at Sar-
atoga, at this place, of which military court General
Stark was president, was hung on a gallows during a

Marquis de Chastelluxs Letter. 77

are about the same height ; it then descends by sev-
eral rapids which turn the mills;* then the ground is
more open, and continues so to the North River [the
Hudson]; that is to say, for half a mile. As to
General Burgoyne's position, it is difficult to describe
it, because the ground is so very irregular, and the
General, finding himself surrounded, was obliged to

terrific rain storm, and afterwards perpendicularly
buried in the gravel bank opposite the Strover man-
sion. When the bank was dug into for the purpose
of procuring gravel the body was disinterred and the
skull was taken into keeping by the late Colonel
Strover, who was wont to show it to curiosity-seekers.
Also, a number of Indian tomahawks made of stone;
a great variety of stone arrow heads ; a large eight-
inch shell; an iron weed axe; iron wedges; a petrified
honeycomb found in the Fish kill ; a string of brass
beads dug from an Indian squaw's grave at the time
of the French and Indian war; a number of silver
shoe and knee buckles ; a bolt from a burned door
of the old General Schuyler House ; an iron pulley
from the old mill ; an old and peculiarly constructed
door lock and key ; burglar proof, attached to the
front door of the present mansion. Indeed, the
spacious and comfortable rooms of the Schuyler
mansion, with its large closets, its bright, large fig-
ured wall paper, the grand furniture, windows, doors,
pictures, etc., make it a very desirable home as well
as a pleasant place of resort. Colonel Strover, the
late owner of this mansion, and who died October 5,
1886, was born March 12, 1791, near Bryant's Bridge
in the town of " Old Saratoga."
*The same as it is to-day (1895).

78 Marquis de Chastelluxs Letter.

divide his troops into three camps, forming three
different fronts ; one facing the creek, another Hud-
son's River, and the third the mountains to the west-
ward. General Burgoyne's plan gives a tolerably
just idea of this position, which was not ill taken, and
is only defective on the side of the Germans, where
the ground forms a rising, the declivity of which was
against them. All that is necessary to observe is,
that the woods continually rise toward the west ; so
that the General might very well occupy some advan-
tageous eminences, but never the summits. Accord-
ingly, General Gates, who arrived at Saratoga almost
as soon as the English, passed two thousand men over
the creek, with orders to begin to fire on the I4th,
and considerably incommoded the English. General
Schuyler criticises this position ; he pretends that this
corps was so advanced as to be in danger, without
being strong enough to oppose the retreat of the
enemy. But when we consider that these two thou-
sand men were posted in very thick woods ; that they
were protected by abatis ; had a secure retreat in the
immense forest in their rear, and that they had
only to harrass a flying enemy, whose courage was
broken, every military man will think with me,
that this was rather the criticism of a severe rival,
than of a well informed and methodical tactician.
Be this as it may, it is very certain that Burgoyne
had no other alternative than to let his troops be
slaughtered, or capitulate. His army had only
five days provision, and it was impossible for him to

Marquis de Chastelluxs Letter. 79

retain his position. It was proposed to him to restore
an old bridge of boats, which had been constructed
in the very front of his camp ; but a corps of two
thousand men were already posted on the heights on
the opposite side of the river, where they had raised
a battery of two pieces of cannon. Had he under-
taken to remount by the right bank, to attain the
fords which are near Fort Edward, he had ravines to
pass and bridges to repair ; besides that, these defiles
were already occupied by the militia, and the vanguard
alone must have been engaged with them, whilst he
had a whole army on his rear and on his flanks. He
had scarce time to deliberate — the cannon shot
began to pour into the camp, one of which fell in the
house where the council of war was holding and
obliged them to quit it to take refuge in the woods.*
Let us now compare the situation of General Bur-
goyne, collecting his trophies and publishing his
insolent manifesto at Ticonderoga,f with that in

* Not ''the house." It was a tent ; and the cir-
cumstances were these : that during a dinner of
Burgoyne and his staff a cannon-ball from Gates's
batteries took off from the table a leg of mutton
which Burgoyne was just beginning to carve. The
little breastworks which were thrown around the tent
are still (1895) to be seen. This ground is now
(1895) owned by Mr. Charles W. May hew, of Schuy-
lerville, N. Y.

f A mistake. This " insolent manifesto " was issued
from Burgoyne's camp on the River Racquet, on
Lake Champlain, before he had reached Ticonderoga.

So Marquis de Chastelluxs Letter.

which he now stood, when, vanquished and sur-
rounded, as he was, by a troop of peasants, not a
place was left him even to discuss the terms of sup-
plication. I confess that when I was conducted to
the spot where the English laid down their arms,
and to that where they filed off before Gates's
army, I could not but partake of the triumph of the
Americans, and at the same time admire their magna-
nimity ; for the soldiers and officers beheld their
presumptuous and sanguinary enemies pass without
offering the smallest insult, without suffering an in-
sulting smile or jesture to escape them. This majes-
tic silence conveyed a very striking refutation of the
vain declarations of the English general, and seemed
to attest all the rights of our allies to the victory.*

* Chastellux does not state one incident of this
occasion. The piling of the arms was, it is true, done
amid profound silence and without any attempt to
further humiliate the British. The instant, however,
that the march southward began, the American bands
struck up " Yankee Doodle" This was unforseen,
and it made a deep impression on the officers and
soldiers of both armies. This song had been set to
music by a facetious English surgeon at Lake George
during the French war, in playful ridicule of some
raw companies of Provincials who had come to the
frontiers to assist Loudon in his campaign against
the French. The Provincials were gay, if not dis-
ciplined, and the surgeon made music out of their
\y primitive notes of mirth. From the moment it was
played at the surrender of Burgoyne it has been one

Marquis de Chastelluxs Letter. 81

Chance alone gave rise to an allusion with which
General Burgoyne was very sensibly affected. It is
the custom in England, and in America, on approach-
ing any person for the first time, to say, / am very
happy to see you. General Gates chanced to make
use of this expression in accosting General Burgoyne :
" I believe you are" replied the general, " the future
of the day is entirely yours." General Gates pre-
tended to give no attention to this answer, and con-
ducted Burgoyne to his headquarters, where he gave
him a good dinner, as well as to the principal part of
the English officers. Everybody ate and drank
heartily, and seemed mutually to forget their mis-
fortune, or their successes.*

of our national airs. For a fuller account of the
origin of " Yankee Doodle," see my " Burgoyne Bal-
lads," pp. 20 and 60.

* Speaking of the surrender, General de Peyster,
who, with General Rogers, is the most authoritative
writer on the Burgoyne Campaign, says:

" History and tradition agree, moreover, in their
accounts of the contrast of the details presented, per-
sonally, by the British and American, the royal and
rebels or patriots, commanders at the ceremony of the
surrender. Burgoyne, like Lee at Appomattox Court
House, was gotten up with the most fastidious atten-
tion, for the occasion; whereas, Gates, like Grant, dis-
played a negligent simplicity. Burgoyne resembled an
officer of the ancient Greek Phalanx in its glory. He
towered and shone in crimson and gold, beplumed,
embroidered, and bedecked with feathers, lace, rib-
bons, orders and decorations. Gates does not ap-
ii

82 Marquis de Chastclluxs Letter.

Before dinner, and at the moment when the
Americans were striving who should entertain the
English officers, somebody came to ask where Ma-
pear to have worn any uniform, unless a simple blue
frock coat was then considered " undress."

The contrast, however, between the conquered and
the factitious conqueror (both Englishmen) was not
as great as between both, but especially the latter,
and the real factor of this triumph (an American.)
The hero who made such a success possible, the real
hero, the great man, Schuyler, appeared at the sur-
render as a simple citizen, deprived of his command
-in dark brown clothes, not in uniform — to see the
arrogant little man Gates, who supplanted him, enjoy
the honors of the triumph and harvest the reward.

" But on this simple spectator in plain civil habili-
ments, the eyes of the defeated generals were fixed
rather than upon the one in semi-military costume,
to whom they had to deliver up their side arms. If
Burgoyne could not tender his sword to Schuyler in
his modest citizen suit, and if he could not surrender
his arms to him as he had to do to his nominal con-
queror, he nevertheless could still offer him his ac-
knowledgments, as to his moral vanquisher — victor
chiefest of all in magnanimity.

" Reflecting upon all this the following question
presents itself: If Burgoyne and his officers could
have preserved their uniforms in such 'apple-pie
order* and perfection of display, how is it possible
to believe in the accounts of the utter destitution of
his army ; or did the higher officers sacrifice every-
thing and everybody to secure their own comforts
and their paraphernalia for their arrogant display ?
A great deal which enlists sympathy becomes doubt-

Marquis de Chastelluxs Letter. 83

dame Riedesel, the wife of the Brunswick general,
was to be conducted. Mr. Schuyler. who had fol-
lowed the army as a volunteer, since he had quitted

ful in the light of close scrutiny. Great discomfort
among the high officials, privation among their sub-
ordinates, and misery throughout the rank and file,
were experienced, but the whole seems invested with
an atmosphere of exaggeration for the very purpose
of serving as an excuse for the ' Surrender.' All this
must impress itself on a critic, who is at once careful
in examination, clear in comparisons of facts, and
stern in judgment.

" Almost all the different accounts agree in regard
to the courtesies which attended the meeting of the
generals opposed, but the following set-off is found
in a French book :

" Burgoyne, who wished to pass for a wit, had
often spoken of Gates as a man without talents, and
designated him, in common conversation, as the
4 mid-wife.' Although Gates was aware of the sar-
casms, he behaved with great generosity. His only
retaliation was a witticism which must have cut Bur-
goyne to the quick, because wits seldom relish a
defeat with their own weapons. ' You must now ac-
knowledge,' he said to Burgoyne after the surrender,
' that I am a successful 4 mid-wife,' for I have safely
delivered you of six thousand men.'

" Gates, thus termed in sarcasm the ' man-mid-
wife,' and accidentally present at the proper moment
—although he had not superintended the progress of
the terrible and protracted labor — did absolutely play
the part of an accoucheur, and ushered into being a
new nation — a NEW WORLD. Creasy, as often stated,
regards the issue of the battles styled ' Saratoga,' and

84 Marquis de Chastelluxs Letter.

the command, ordered her to be shown to his tent,
where he went soon after, and found her trembling
and speechless, expecting to find in every American
a savage, like those who had followed the English
army. She had with her two charming little girls,*
about six or seven years old. General Schuyler ca-
ressed them greatly ; the sight of this touched
Madame de Riedesel and removed her apprehension
in an instant: " You are tender and sensible?' said

the resulting 'Surrender' as the Thirteenth of the
' Fifteen Decisive Battles of the World from Mara-
thon to Waterloo.'

" The surrender of Burgoyne is also one of the
many historical associations which have signalized
the 7th of October. Apart from the tradition which
gives it the honor of William the Conqueror's land-
ing in England, it has that of the great events so
strangely interwoven with the career of the Bur-
goyne family. It witnessed General Burgoyne's
acceptance of the command that brought him to
America, and also his final overthrow at Saratoga in
1777, resulting in the surrender of himself and his
whole army. On the same memorable day his
famous son, Sir John Burgoyne, completed the land-
ing of the siege-guns and material used ten days later
in the first bombardment of Sebastopol ; and the
4 family anniversary ' subsequently acquired a sad-
der renown by the death of Sir John himself. The
victory, also, of King's Mountain occurred on this
memorable date — the 7th of October."

* For the after career of these two little girls, see
my "Life of Madame Riedesel."

Marquis de Chastelluxs Letter. 85

she, "you must be generous, and I am happy to have
fallen into your hands."

In consequence of the capitulation, the English
army was conducted to Boston. During their march
the troops encamped, but lodgings were to be pro-
cured for the Generals, and there being some diffi-
culty in procuring near Albany a proper quarter for
General Burgoyne and his suite, Mr. Schuyler offered
him his handsome house. He was himself detained
by business at Saratoga, where he remained to visit
the ruins of his other house, which General Burgoyne
had just destroyed ;* but he wrote to his wife to pre-
pare every thing for giving him the best reception,
and his intentions were perfectly fulfilled. Burgoyne
was extremely well received by Mrs. Schuyler, and
her little family ;f he was lodged in the best apart-
ment in the house. An excellent supper was served
him in the evening, the honors of which were done
with so much grace, that he was affected even to
tears, and could not help saying with a deep sigh,
" Indeed, this is doing too much for the man who has
ravaged their lands, and burnt their asylum." The
next morning, however, he was again reminded of his
disgrace by an adventure which would have ap-

* See note ante about the building of Schuyler's
new house.

f Mrs. Schuyler — judging by our present ladies-
could not have had much bric-a-brac destroyed in the
burning of her house, else she would not have given
Burgoyne so kind a reception !

86 Marquis de Chastellnxs Letter.

peared gay to any but him. It was, however, inno-
cently that he was thus afflicted. His bed was pre-
pared in a large room, but as he had a numerous
suite, or family, several mattresses were spread upon
the floor for some officers to sleep near him. Mr.
Schuyler's second son, a little spoilt child of about
seven years old, very forward and arch, as all the
American children are, but very amiable, was running
all the morning about the house, according to cus-
tom, and opening the door of the saloon, he burst out
a laughing on seeing all the English collected, and
shut it after him, crying, " Ye are all my prisoners"
This stroke of nature was cruel and rendered them
more melancholy than the preceding evening.*

*"The boy who said he took Burgoyne prisoner
was John Bradstreet Schuyler, eldest son of Gen.
Philip Schuyler. He was 14 years of age in 1777.
He married Elizabeth Van Rensselaer, daughter of
the patroon, on the i8th September, 1787, and died
in his father's house in Albany, at the age of 32.
Although so young he was one of the trustees of
Williamstown college, Massachusetts. His disease
was a fever contracted while on a business trip for
his father up the Mohawk valley. The only child of
this John Bradstreet Schuyler, born 1762, died 1795,
was Philip Schuyler, of Schuylerville, Saratoga Co ,
N. Y., born in 1788. He married Grace Hunter in
1811, and died at his country seat at Pelham, West-
chester Co., in 1865. John Schuyler, of New York
city, civil engineer, historian, etc., was only son of
Philip, and with him ends the eldest male line of
Major-General Philip Schuyler, the real check-mater,

Marquis de Chastelluxs Letter. 87

I hope I shall be pardoned these little anecdotes,
which only appeared interesting to myself, perhaps
solely from their proceeding from the source,* and
being acquired upon the spot. Besides, a plain
Journal merits some indulgence, and when one does
not write history, it is allowable to write little stories.
Henceforth, I have only to take leave of General
Schuyler, detained by business at Saratoga, and to
tread back my steps as fast as possible to Newport.

In repassing near Breams Heights and Stillwater,
I had again an opportunity to examine the right
flank of General Burgoyne's camp, of which it seems
to me that his plan gives a pretty accurate idea. I
was assured that I might return to Albany by the
eastern road, but on arriving at Half-Moon I learnt
that the ice was broke in several places, so that, after
reposing some time in a handsome inn, kept by
Madame People (a Dutchman's widow), I took the
road by the Mohawk river, which I passed without
accident, and arrived at Albany about six in the
evening.

overthrower of Burgoyne, or who "burgoyned Bur-
goyne." Letter of Gen. J. Watts de Peyster to the
editor.

* I. E.} Gen. Schuyler.

VISIT TO THE BATTLE GROUNDS IN 1791 BY

MRS. DWIGHT, MOTHER OF THE LATE

DR. THEODORE DWIGHT.

" My mother, who possessed a most accurate mem-
ory, furnished me with the following account of a
visit she made to the Saratoga Battle Ground and
the Springs in 1791. I give it nearly in the words in
which I received it. — The late Theodore Dwight to
the editor.

" The party originally consisted of five, three gen-
tlemen and two ladies, who travelled with the gigs
(then called chairs) and a saddle-horse. Their first
plan was to proceed only to ' Lebanon Pool,' now
known as Lebanon Springs and after a short visit
there to return ; some of their friends, who had
spent a little time there in preceding years, having
made a pleasing report of the place. The grand-
mother of one of them, it was recollected, had re-
turned from 'the Pool' one pleasant day before the
Revolution, and dismounted from her side saddle, in
a dark colored jersey and petticoat, with the dignity
proverbial of those old times, yet told of her cook-
ing for dinner the pease picked by the gentlemen at
that ancient watering place.

Mrs. Dwighfs Letter. 89

" From Hartford the party proceeded westward ;
and some idea may be formed of the fashions from
the dress of one of the ladies, who wore a black
beaver with a sugar-loaf crown, eight or nine inches
high, called a steeple crown, wound round with black
and red cord and tassels, being less showy than the
gold cord sometimes worn. Habits having gone out
of fashion, the dress was of ' London smoke ' broad-
cloth buttoned down in front and at the side with
twenty-four gilt buttons, about the size of a half dol-
lar. Long waists and stays were in fashion, and the
shoes were extremely sharp-toed and high-heeled,
ornamented with large paste buckles on the instep.
At a tavern where we spent the first night, the ladies
were obliged to surround themselves with a barrier
of bean-leaves to keep off the bugs which infested
the place ; but this afforded only temporary benefit,
as the vermin soon crept to the ceiling and fell upon
them from above. The Green Woods, through which
the road lay for many miles, were very rough, and in
many places could not be traveled in carriages with-
out danger. We scarcely met anybody on this part
of the way, except an old man with a long white
beard, who looked like a palmer on a pilgrimage to
the Holy Land ; and his wife — who rode a horse on
a saddle with a projecting pummel, then called a pan-
nel, and a single iron chain for a bridle — was as
ugly as one of Shakspeare's old crones.

" The few habitations to be seen were so uninviting^
that we usually took our meals in the open air, in
12

go Mrs. Dwighfs Letter.

some pleasant spot under the trees, and often by the
side of a brook, the recollection of which is pleasant
even to this day. After three days we reached Hud-
son, where we were introduced to a very pleasant cir-
cle by a friend who resided in the place, and after
sufficient repose we proceeded. A gentleman, who
had come to attend a ball, here joined the party,
sending a messenger home for clothes ; and although
he did not receive them, and had only his dancing
dress, persisted in proceeding with us. He mounted
his horse, therefore, in a suit of white broadcloth,
with powdered hair, small-clothes, and white silk
stockings. While at Hudson, it had been determined
that we would go directly to Saratoga, where several
of the inhabitants of Hudson then were; the efficacy
of the water in restoring health being much cele-
brated, as well as the curious round and hollow rock
from which it flowed. Hudson was a flourishing vil-
lage, although it had been settled but about seven
years, by people from Nantucket and Rhode Island.
"In the afternoon the prospect of a storm made
us hasten our gait, and we stopped for the night at an
old Dutch house, which, notwithstanding the uncouth
aspect of a fireplace without jams, was a welcome
retreat from the weather. The thunder, lightning
and rain soon came on, and prevailed for some hours,
but left a clear sky in the morning, when our party
proceeded and reached Albany at breakfast-time.
Some of our party were greatly alarmed at the sight
of an old woman at a door in one of the streets,

Mrs. Dwighfs Letter. 91

with her face shockingly disfigured by the small-pox,
in a state of activity, for one of the ladies had never
had that disease, and was near enough to be exposed
to the contagion. By the presence of mind of her
companions, however, she was prevented from ob-
serving the painful object, and from such apprehen-
sion as they felt for her, until the time for the appear-
ance of the disease had passed. The old Dutch
church, with its pointed roof and great window of
painted glass, stood at that time, at the foot of State
street.

"At Troy, where we took tea, there were only
about a dozen houses; the place having been settled
only three years by people from Killingworth, Say-
brook, and other towns in Connecticut. Lansing-
burgh was an older and more considerable town ;
containing apparently more than a hundred houses,
and inhabited principally by emigrants from the same
state. The tavern was a very good one ; but the
inhabitants were so hospitable to the party, who were
known through mutual friends, that the time was
spent almost entirely at private houses. After a
delay of two nights and a day, we proceeded on
our journey. Crossing the Hudson to Waterford
by a ferry, we went back as far as the Mohawk to
see the Cohoes Falls, of which we had a fine view
from the northern bank, riding along the brow of the
precipice in going and returning.

" On the road to the Mohawk we met a party of
some of the most respectable citizens of Albany in

92 Mrs. Dwighfs Letter.

a common country wagon, without a cover, with
straw under feet, and with wooden chairs for seats ;
their family coach being too heavy for short excur-
sions. Two gentlemen on horseback, in their com-
pany, finding that we were going to Saratoga, offered
to accompany us to the scene of the Battle of Beh-
mus Heights, and thither we proceeded after visiting
Cohoes.

We dined at the house which was General Bur-
goyne's headquarters in 1777;* and one of the

* A mistake which Lossing and Neilson both fall
into. Burgoyne's headquarters were on high ground
-the farm (1894) of Mr. Wilbur. The " Brunswick
Journal" is very explicit in stating that " Burgoyne
camped between the English and German troops on
the heights at the left wing." This statement, more-
over, receives additional confirmation by the follow-
ing incident, viz.: On one of my visits to the
battle-ground, I pointed out to Mr. Wilbur (on
whose land we were then standing) the place desig-
nated by the "Brunswick Journal" and Burgoyne's
map — which I then held in my hand — as Burgoyne's
headquarters. " That," exclaimed Mr. Wilbur, " ex-
plains what I have often wondered at." He then
stated that when he first plowed up that particular
spot he was accustomed to find great quantities of
old gin and wine bottles ; and that until my explana-
tion he had often been puzzled to know " how on
earth those bottles came there ! " See map in my
" Burgoyne s Campaign"

The house mentioned by Mrs. Dwight, and which
was formerly known as the "Taylor House," and

Mrs. Dwighfs Letter. 93

females who attended us was there during the battle.
She informed us of many particulars, and showed us
a spot upon the floor which was stained with the
blood of General Eraser, who, she added, when
brought in mortally wounded from the field, was laid
upon the very table at which we were seated. Dur-
ing the funeral, she also stated, the American troops,
who had got into the rear of the British on the
opposite side of the river,* and had been firing on
the house, on discovering the cause of the procession
up the steep hill, where Fraser had requested to be
interred, not only ceased firing, but played a dead
march in compliment to his memory.

On leaving the battle-ground for Saratoga Lake*
our party was reduced to four by the loss of the four

since as the " Smith House," stood in tolerable pre-
servation until 1864. The site is now (1894) marked
by a few of the foundation stones and a small poplar
tree. At the time of the battles it stood under the
knoll where Fraser was buried, but was afterward
moved down to the bank of the Hudson, on the right
hand of the river road, going south. Also, in this
connection, see, in advance, Professor Silliman's visit
to the battle-ground for his reflections on the death
of Fraser, while tarrying all night at this house.

* While Burgoyne, with his army, was at Saratoga,
the Indians were in the habit of supplying his table
with delicious trout, caught in Saratoga Lake. In-
deed, a few of these fish continued to be caught in
that beautiful sheet of water as late as 1843. See
Col. W. L. Stone's letter to the Commercial Adver-

94 . Mrs. Dwighfs Letter.

gentlemen, two of whom, however, intended to over-
take us, if possible, before night. The country we
had to pass over, after leaving the Hudson, was very
uninteresting and uninhabited. The road lay through
a forest, and was formed of logs. [This was un-
doubtedly the road cut through from the present
village of Schuylerville, by General Schuyler, in
1783.] We traveled till late in the afternoon before
we reached a house, to which we had been directed
for our lodging. It stood in a solitary place, in an
opening of the dark forest, and had so comfortless
an appearance that without approaching to take a
near view or alighting, we determined to proceed
further. [Probably the site of the present " old Pot-
ter Tavern/' now " Birch's," a mile from Stafford's
Bridge.]

It was a wretched log hut, with only one door,
which had never been on hinges, was to be lifted by
every person coming in or going out, and had no
fastening except a few nails. We halted at the right
of it, and one of the gentlemen rode up to take a
nearer view. Standing up in his saddle, he peeped
into a square hole which served as a window, but had
no glass nor shutter, and found the floor the bare
earth, with scarcely any furniture to be seen. Nothing
remained for us but to proceed and make our way to

User. The last trout was caught through the ice in
the winter of 1860, by the late Daniel Shepherd, of
Saratoga Springs.

Mrs. Dwighfs Letter. 95

the Springs as fast as possible ; for we knew of no
human habitation nearer, and when or how we might
hope to reach there we could not tell. We were for
a time extremely dispirited, until the gentleman who
had joined us at Hudson came forward (still in his
ball dress) and endeavored to encourage us, saying
that if we would trust to his guidance he doubted not
that he should be able to conduct us safely and
speedily to a more comfortable habitation.

This raised our hopes, and we followed him cheer-
fully, though the day was now at its close, and the
forest seemed thicker and darker than before. When
the last light at length had disappeared, and we found
ourselves in deeper gloom, our guide confessed that
he had encouraged us to keep us from despair, and
as to any knowledge of the road, he had never been
there before in his life. He, however, dismounted,
tied his horse behind our chair, and taking the bridle
of our own, began to lead him on, groping his way
as well as he was able, stepping into one mud-hole
after another without regard to his silk stockings,
sometimes up to his beauish knee-buckles. It seemed
as if we were going for a long time down a steep hill
into some bottomless pit ; and every few minutes one
wheel would pass over a log or a stump so high as
almost to overset us. At length we insisted on stop-
ping, and spent a quarter of an hour in anxiety and
doubt, being unable to determine what we had better
do. We heard the voices of animals in the woods,
which some of us feared might attack us. At length

96 Mrs. Dwights Letter.

one of the gentlemen declared that a sound which we
had heard for some time at a distance could not be
the howl of a wolf, for which we had taken it, but
must be the barking of a wolf-dog, and indicated that
the habitation of its master was not very far off, pro-
posing to go in search of it. The gentlemen were
unwilling to leave us alone ; but we insisted that they
might need each other's assistance, and made them
go together. But it was a long time before we heard
from them again. How long they were gone I do
not know, for we soon became impatient and
alarmed ; but at length we discovered a light among
the trees, which, shining upon the trunks and boughs,
made a beautiful vista, like an endless Gothic arch,
and showed a thousand tall columns on both sides.
We discovered them returning, accompanied by two
men, who led us off the road, and stuck up lighted
pine knots to guide our friends.

" Under their guidance we found our way to a log-
house, containing but one room, and destitute of
every thing except hospitable inhabitants ; so that,
although we were admitted, we found we should be
obliged to make such arrangements as we could for
sleeping. There was no lamp nor candle, light being
supplied by pine knots stuck in the crevices of the
walls. The conversation of the family proved that
wild beasts were very numerous and bold in the sur-
rounding forest, and that they sometimes, when hun-
gry, approached the house ; and there was a large
aperture left at the bottom of the door to admit the

Mrs. Dwighfs Letter. 97

dogs when in danger from wolves.* The floor ex-
tended on one side but to within the distance of
several feet of the wall, a space being left to kindle
the fire upon the bare ground, and when we wanted
tea made, the mistress of the house could produce
only a single kettle, in which water was boiled for
washing and every other purpose. She had heard of
teakettles, but had never seen one, and was impressed
with an idea of the usefulness of such a utensil.
When we had spread the table, out of our own stores,
and divided tea-cups and saucers, a porringer, &c.,
among us, we seated ourselves, partly on the bed-
stead and partly on a kind of arm-chair, which was
formed by an old round table when raised perpen-
dicularly, and thus partook of a meal.

" We were, however, suddenly alarmed by cries or
screams at a little distance in the forest, which some
of us supposed to be those of wolves or bears. Our
host, after listening a while, declared his belief that
they were the cries of some travelers who had
lost their way, and proceeded with the gentlemen
to search for them. They found our two expected
friends, who had followed the path lighted by the
torches, but unfortunately wandered from it a little,

* The vicinity of Saratoga Lake seems in early
Revolutionary times to have been a great place for
wolves. The late Amos Stafford — one of the sur-
vivors of the Wyoming Massacre — who settled on
the banks of Fish Creek, paid for his farm by the
bounties he received from the wolves he killed.

13

98 Mrs. Dwighfs Letter.

and soon found before them a wall too high to reach
from their stirrups. They attempted to retreat, but
found it also behind them, and though they rode
round and round, feeling for a place of exit, could
find none, and then began to call for assistance, hop-
ing that some dwelling might be within the reach of
their voices. Being happily relieved and restored to
us, the adventures of the evening served as a subject
of pleasantry. They had unconsciously entered a
pound or pen for bears, by a very narrow entrance,
which, in the darkness they could not find again, and
thus their embarrassment was fully explained.* We
slept that night on our luggage and saddles, but our
hospitable hosts refused all reward in the morning.
44 On reaching the springs at Saratoga, we found
but three habitations, and those poor log-houses, on
the high bank of the meadow, where is now the west-
ern side of the street, near the Round Rock.* This
was the only spring then visited. The houses were
almost full of strangers, among whom were several
ladies and gentlemen from Albany, and we found it
almost impossible to obtain accommodations, even
for two nights. We found the Round Rock at that
time entire, the large tree which some years since fell

* The impenetrable wood, here so graphically de-
scribed, was what is even, at the present day, known
among the farmers of the vicinity as " Bear Swamp."
This letter shows how correctly it is named — it hav-
ing been in early times a favorite resort for bears. — S.

*Since known as the " High-Rock."

Mrs. Dwighfs Letter. 99

and cracked a fissure in it being then standing near,
and the water, which occasionally overflowed, and
increased the rock by its deposits, keeping the gene-
ral level three or four inches below the top. The
neighborhood of the spring, like all the country we
had seen for many miles, was a perfect forest, and
there were no habitations to be seen in all the vi-
cinity, except the three log-houses, which afforded us
little more than a shelter. We arrived on Saturday,
and left there on Monday morning for Ballston, which
we reached after a short ride. But there the accom-
modations for visitors were still less inviting. The
springs, of which there were several, were entirely
unprotected, on the borders of a woody swamp, and
near the brook, in which we saw bubbles rising in
several places, which indicated other springs. There
were two or three miserable habitations, but none in
which a shelter could be obtained. There was a small
hovel, into which some of the water was conducted
for bathing, but as there was nothing like comfort to
be found, we proceeded homeward after spending a
short time at the place."

VISIT OF THE DUG DE LA ROCHEFOUCAULD-

LIANCOURT,* TO THE SURRENDER

GROUNDS IN 1795.

In 1795, the then Due de La Rochefoucauld-
Liancourt visited the famous battle-fields of Saratoga,
and in his published account of his travels in the new
world upon his return gives a graphic account of the
scenes of Burgoyne's surrender.

" I have seen," says the Due, "John Schuyler, the
eldest son of the general. For a few minutes I had
already conversed with him at Schenectady, and was
now with him at Saratoga. The journey to this
place was extremely painful, on account of the scorch-
ing heat ; but Saratoga is a township of too great
importance to be passed by unobserved. If you love
the English, are fond of conversing with them, and
live with them on terms of familiarity and friendship,
it is no bad thing if occasionally you can say to them,
' / have seen Saratoga'

* Rochefoucauld-Liancourt Duke de la, French
publicist, b. in la Roche Gayon, 14 Jan., 1747 ; d. in
Paris, Mch. 28, 1827. As early as 1 745 he carried on
agricultural improvements on his family estate, and
in 1780, founded there, at his own expense, a school
of mechanical arts for soldiers' sons, which has since

Due de La Rochefoucauld-Liancourfs Letter. 101

" Yes, I have seen this truly memorable place, which
may be considered as the spot where the independ-
ence of America was sealed ; for the events which
induced Great Britain to acknowledge that independ-
ence were obviously consequences of the capture of
General Burgoyne, and would, in all probability,
never have happened without it. The dwelling-house
of John Schuyler stands exactly on the spot where
this important occurrence took place.* Fish creek,
which flows close to the house, formed the line of

became the school of "Arts et Metiers" of France.
He was a favorite of Louis XVI, and during the
reign of terror endeavored to save the King. Flying
to England, he remained there till 1794, when he
came to the United States. After traveling through
the principal States, he bought a farm in Pennsyl-
vania, and spent some time in experiments. At the
restoration of Louis XVIII he was created a peer,
and afterwards devoted himself to the prosecution of
useful arts and to benevolent institutions. He es-
tablished in Paris the first savings bank, and was
also instrumental in introducing vaccination in
France. He always advocated American principles
and institutions, and acquired, through his benevo-
lent and philanthropic actions, great popularity. His
works include, among others, a " Voyage dans les
Etats-Unis," 8 vols., New York, 1795-7 — from which
the above letter is taken.

* This is, of course, an error. He confounded it
with the fact that near the house the preliminary
conferences were exchanged. See Wilkinson and
my Burgoyne s Campaign.

IO2 Due de La Rochefoucauld-Liancourfs Letter.

defence of the camp of the English general, which
was formed on an eminence a quarter of a mile from
the dwelling. The English camp was also entirely
surrounded with a mound of earth to strengthen its
defence. In the rear of the camp the German troops
were posted by divisions on a commanding height,
communicating with the eminence on which General
Burgoyne was encamped. The right wing of the
German corps had a communication with the left
wing of the English, and the left extended towards
the river. General Gates was encamped on the other
side of the creek at the distance of an eighth of a
mile from General Burgoyne, his right wing stretched
toward the plain ; but he endeavored to shelter his
troops as much as possible from the enemy's fire
until he resolved to form the attack. General Neil-
son, at the head of the American militia, occupied the
heights on the other side of the river, and engaged
the attention of the left wing of the English while
other American troops observed the movements of
the right wing. In this position General Burgoyne
surrendered his army. His provisions were nearly
consumed, but he was amply supplied with artillery
and ammunition. The spot remains exactly as it
then was, excepting the sole circumstance that the
bushes, which were cut down in front of the two
armies, are since grown up again. Not the least
alteration has taken place since that time. The en-
trenchments still exist ; nay, the footpath is still seen
on which the adjutant of General Gates proceeded to

Due de La Rochefoucauld-Liancourt's Letter. 103

the English general with the ultimatum of the Ameri-
can commander ; the spot on which the council of
war was held by the English officers remains un-
altered. You see the way by which the English
column, after it had been joined by the Germans,
filed off by the left to lay down their arms within an
ancient fort, which was constructed in the war under
the reign of Queen Anne ; you see the place where
the unfortunate army was necessitated to ford the
creek in order to reach the road to Albany, and to
march along the front of the American army ; you see
the spot where General Burgoyne surrendered up his
sword to. General Gates,* when the man, who two
months before had threatened all the rebels, their
parents, their wives and their children with pillage,
sacking, firing and scalping, if they did not join the
English banner, was compelled to bend British pride
under the yoke of these rebels, and when he
underwent the two-fold humiliation as a minis-
terial agent of the English government to submit
to the dictates of ' revolted subjects and a com-
manding general of disciplined regular troops, and to
surrender up his army to a multitude of half-armed

* For many years, until destroyed by fire, April
15, 1879, an °ld elm tree in the present village of
Schuylerville, near a blacksmith's shop, was supposed
to mark the spot where Burgoyne surrendered. This
was a mistake ; it was under this tree that the articles
of capitulation were signed, and as such it is a memo-
rable spot.

IO4 Due de La Rochefoucanld-Liancourfs Letter.

and half-clothed peasants. To sustain so severe
a misfortune and not to die with despair exceeds
not, it seems, therefore, the strength of man. This
memorable spot lies in a corner of the court-yard of
John Schuyler;* he was then a youth twelve years
old, and placed on an eminence, at the foot of which
stood General Gates and near which the American
army was drawn up, to see their disarmed enemies
pass by. His estate includes all the tract of ground
on which both armies were encamped and he knows
as it were their every step. How happy must an
American feel in the possession of such property if
his bosom be anywise susceptible of warm feelings !
It is a matter of astonishment that neither Congress
nor the Legislature of New York should have erected
a monument on this spot reciting in plain terms this
glorious event and thus calling it to the recollection
of all men who should pass this way to keep alive
the sentiments of intrepidity and courage and the
sense of glory which for the benefit of America
should be handed down among Americans from gene-
ration to generation." f

' The Lake Champlain canal now runs through
the site of the surrender.

f The Saratoga Monument, at Schuylerville, N. Y.,
has since been erected — mainly through the patriotic
efforts in Congress of Hon. John H. Starin — now,
1895, president of the SARATOGA MONUMENT Asso-
ciation. The corner-stone of the monument laid in
1877— was donated by Booth Bros., New York, who
were also the builders of the monument.

VISIT OF REV. TIMOTHY DWIGHT, D. D., To

THE BATTLE AND SURRENDER GROUNDS

IN SEPTEMBER, 1779.*

Rev. Timothy Dwight — for many years the dis-
tinguished president of Yale College — was in the
habit of spending his college vacations in traveling
through the New England States and New York.
These travels were published in four volumes in
1821 ; and the work is regarded as one of permanent
value and interest in regard to the natural history
and social condition of the country. On one of
these trips he visited the Saratoga Battle-Ground.
The narrative of his visit contains nothing new re-
garding the battle with the exception that in speak-
ing of the battle of the 7th of October, he states
that as Arnold entered the works, Breyman, with a
few of his men, saw a body of troops dressed like
Americans in action. Upon his demanding with a

* Timothy Dwight, educator, born in Northhamp-
ton, Mass., May 14, 1752; died in New Haven,
Conn., nth of January, 1817. On the death of
Dr. Stiles, in 1795, he was called to the presi-
dency of Yale College — an office which he held
until his death ; and in his long and successful ad-
ministration of the affairs of that college, his claims

14

io6 Rev. Timothy Dwighfs Letter.

stern voice whether they were of such a corps, a
" thundering German voice " answered. " Naw"
while at the same time, a fire was poured in upon
him by which he was wounded in the leg. I there-
fore, omit the account of his visit, giving merely the
writer's reflections on the battlefield. He says :

" I could here almost forget that Arnold became a
traitor to his country, and satisfy myself with recol-
lecting that to his invincible gallantry, and that of
the brave officers and soldiers whom he led, my coun-
try was, under God, indebted in a prime degree, for
her independence and all its consequent blessings.
Dr. Johnson himself could hardly forbid an American
to love his country. I should think that an Ameri-
can, peculiarly an inhabitant of New England or New

to distinction largely rest. In politics he was a Fede-
ralist of the Hamilton school, and he earnestly de-
precated French ideas of education. His published
works fill thirteen large octavo volumes ; and his un-
published MS. would fill as many more. The late
president, Theodore W. Dwight, of Columbia Col-
lege, once remarked in conversation that he had a
personal interest in the Saratoga Battle-Ground,
" for," said he, " my grandfather, Timothy Dwight,
was there as a chaplain under General Gates, and a
few days before the battle he preached from the text,
" 1 will remove far from thee the Northern Army"
He subsequently became president of Yale College.
This letter, as will be seen, is filled with classical
comparisons and allusions as might naturally be ex-
pected from the writer's profession.

Rev. Timothy Dwight's Letter. 107

York, little to be envied whose patriotism did not
gain force upon the heights of Stillwater or the
plains of Saratoga. These scenes I have examined
— the former with solemnity and awe, the latter with
ardor and admiration, and both with enthusiasm
and rapture. Here I have remembered, and here
it was impossible not to remember that on this very
spot a controversy was decided upon which hung the
liberty and happiness of a nation destined one day
to fill a continent, and of its descendants, who will
probably hereafter outnumber the inhabitants of
Europe.

" General Gates, to cut off the retreat of his enemy,
had detached a strong body up the river in rear of
the British, another to the heights opposite Saratoga,
and a third still further up the river to prevent him
from crossing. Our army reached the field which we
surveyed with so much exultation, lying immediately
north of Saratoga creek [Fish creek] and bordering
the Hudson. It is a large and beautiful interval, and
is rendered not a little more beautiful to the eye by
the remembrance that it was the scene of the most
interesting transaction during the American war.
On this ground the northern army laid down their
arms and surrendered themselves prisoners of war.
The cloud which had long hung with so lowering an
aspect over this part of the horizon dissolved, and
the evening became serene and delightful.

Future travelers will resort to this spot with the
same emotions which we experienced, and recall with

io8 Rev. Timothy Dwighfs Letter.

enthusiasm the glorious events of which it is the
perpetual memorial. It is impossible that they should
not kindle with patriotism. It is to be hoped, also,
that many of them will glow with piety. Even a
generous-minded Englishman must, I think, unite in
his views and feelings with my own countrymen.
How immensely more important to succeeding gene-
rations were these transactions than those of the plain
of Marathon, that immediately affected the States of
Greece only; few in the number of their inhabitants,
and comprising but a speck of territory. Here was
decided the destiny of a nation, inhabiting a million of
square miles, independently of Louisiana, and al-
ready amounting to more than seven millions of
people. Besides the vastness of these objects, every
man of candor will admit, that the religion, the laws,
the government, and the manners of those people,
are as superior to those of the Greeks, as their num-
bers and the extent of their territory who would be
willing that such a body of people, so circumstanced,
should be conquered, and, what is the regular con.
sequence, enslaved ? Who, especially, could be will-
ing that such an event should take place immediately
before an era, at which the lights of human liberty
and happiness have so suddenly, and in such numbers,
been extinguished ?

The majority of the British nation earnestly wished,
that the Americans might not be conquered, while
they wished, also, that their country might not be
separated from the national domain. The ablest

Rev. Timothy Dwighfs Letter. 109

men in the councils of the Kingdom resisted the war
and the measures which led to it, with unmeasurable
arguments, and with irresistible eloquence. The
great Chatham solemnly warned the Parliament of
the danger which was involved in reducing three mil-
lions of their fellow subjects under the dominion of
the Crown, and placing them at its absolute disposal.
The consequences of such an event cannot be
divined, but it demands no great degree of forecast
to perceive that they might have been dreadful.

PROFESSOR SILLIMAN'S VISIT TO THE BAT-
TLE GROUNDS IN 1819.

[The following account of the visit of Professor
Silliman to the battle ground — although he was not
a participant in the battle — has value, from the fact
that his relation is derived mainly from his guide,
Major Buel, who was in the conflict. In the course
of his narrative — to avoid repetition — wherever he
has quoted from Wilkinson or Mrs. Riedesel, pas-
sages which are familiar to the readers of my previ-
ous works, I have placed stars.] This extract is
taken from the edition of 1824. — .5".

HOUSE IN WHICH GENERAL FRASER DIED.

Ten o'clock at night.

We are now on memorable ground. Here much
precious blood was shed, and now, in the silence and
solitude of a very dark and rainy night — the family
asleep, and nothing heard but the rain and the Hud-
son gently murmuring along, I am writing in the
very house, and my table stands on the very spot in
the room where General Eraser breathed his last, on
the 8th of October, 1777.

He was mortally wounded in the last of the two
desperate battles fought on the neighboring heights,

Professor Sillimaris Letter. 1 1 1

and in the midst of the conflict was brought to this
house by the soldiers. Before me lies one of the
bullets shot on that occasion ; they are often found
in plowing the battle field.

Blood is asserted, by the people of the house, to
have been visible here on the floor till a very recent
period.

General Fraser was high in command in the British
army, and was almost idolized by them ; they had the
utmost confidence in his skill and valor, and that the
Americans entertained a similar opinion of him is
sufficiently evidenced by the following anecdote, re-
lated to me at Ballston Springs, in 1797, by the Hon.
Richard Brent,* then a member of Congress from
Virginia, who derived the fact from General Morgan's
own mouth :

In the battle of October, the seventh, the last
pitched battle that was fought between the two
armies, General Fraser, mounted on an iron gray
horse, was very conspicuous. He was all activity,
courage and vigilance, riding from one part of his
division to another, and animating the troops by his
example. Wherever he was present everything
prospered, and when confusion appeared in any part

* Brent, Richard, U. S. Senator ; b. in Virginia ;
d. in Washington, D. C., Dec. 30, 1814. He was
Representative in Congress from Dec. 7, 1795, till
March 3, 1799, and again from Dec. 7, 1801, till
March, 1803. He was elected Senator from Virginia
and served from 226. May, 1809, till his death.

H2 Professor Sillimans Letter.

of the line, order and energy were restored by his
arrival.

Colonel Morgan, with his Virginia riflemen, was
immediately opposed to Fraser's division of the
army.

It had been concerted, before the commencement
of the battle, that while the New Hampshire and the
New York troops attacked the British left, Colonel
Morgan, with his regiment of Virginia riflemen,
should make a circuit so as to come upon the British
right, and attack them there. In this attempt, he
was favored by a woody hill, to the foot of which the
British right extended. When the attack com-
menced on the British left, " true to his purpose,
Morgan at this critical moment, poured down like a
torrent from the hill, and attacked the right of the
enemy in front and flank." The right wing soon
made a movement to support the left, which was as-
sailed with increased violence, and while executing
this movement, General Fraser received his mortal
wound.

In the midst of this sanguinary battle, Colonel
Morgan took a few of his best riflemen aside ; men
in whose fidelity, and fatal precision of aim, he could
repose the most perfect confidence, and said to them:
"That gallant officer is General Fraser; I admire
and respect him, but it is necessary that he should die
—take your stations in that wood and do your duty."
Within a few moments General Fraser fell, mortally
wounded.

Professor Sillimaris Letter. 113

How far, such personal designation is justifiable,
has often been questioned, but those who vindicate
war at all, contend, that to shoot a distinguished
officer, and thus to accelerate the conclusion of a
bloody battle, operates to save lives, and that it is,
morally, no worse, to kill an illustrious, than an ob-
scure individual ; a Fraser, than a common soldier ;
a Nelson, than a common sailor. But, there is
something very revolting to humane feelings, in a
mode of warfare, which converts its ordinary chances
into a specie of military execution. Such instances,
were, however, frequent, during the campaign of
General Burgoyne ; and his Aid-de-Camp, Sir Francis
Clark, and many other British officers, were victims
of American marksmanship.

Retiring at a late hour to my bed, it will be easily
perceived, that the tender and heroic ideas, associated
with this memorable house, would strongly possess
my mind. The night was mantled in black clouds,
and impenetrable darkness ; the rain, increasing, de-
scended in torrents upon the roof of this humble
mansion ; the water, urged from the heights, poured
with loud and incessant rumbling, through a neigh-
boring aqueduct ; and the Hudson, as if conscious
that blood had once stained its waters and its banks,
rolled along with sullen murmurs ; the distinguished
persons, who forty-two years since, occupied this
tenement — the agonized females — the terrified, im-
ploring children — and the gallant chiefs, in all the
grandeur of heroic suffering and death, were vividly
15

H4 Professor Sillimaris Letter.

present to my mind — all the realities of the night,
and the sublime and tender images of the past, con-
spired to give my faculties too much activity for
sleep, and I will not deny that the dawning light was
grateful to my eyes !

The rain having ceased, I was on horseback at
early dawn with a veteran guide to conduct me to
the battleground. Although he was seventy-five
years old, he did not detain me a moment : in conse-
quence of an appointment the evening before, he was
waiting my arrival at his house, a mile below our inn,
and, declining any aid, he mounted a tall horse from
the ground. His name was Ezra Buel,* a native of
Lebanon, in Connecticut, which place he left in his
youth, and was settled here at the time of General
Burgoyne's invasion. He acted through the whole
time as a guide to the American army, and was one
of three who were constantly employed in that ser-
vice. His duty led him to be always foremost, and

* Called colloquially, in the neighborhood, Major
Buel, a rank which he never had in the army, but
which was facetiously assigned him while in the ser-
vice, by his brother guides. He is much respected
as a worthy man. — Edition of 1820.

Major Buel, I believe, still lives. I saw him at
Ballston Springs, in July, 1823, still active and use-
ful, although almost fourscore ; he was then acting
as crier of a state court at that time in session at
Ballston. — March, 1824. Edition of 1824.

The reader, for a further glimpse of Buel, is re-
ferred to Wirt's visit. — S.

Professor Sillimans Letter. 115

in the post of danger, and he was, therefore, admi-
rably qualified for my purpose.

The two great battles which decided the fate of
Burgoyne's army were fought, the first on the igth
of September, and the last, on the jth of October, on
Bemis' heights, and very nearly on the same ground,
which is about two miles west of the river.

The river is in this region bordered for many miles
by a continued meadow of no great breadth : upon
this meadow there was then, as there is now, a good
road close to the river, and parallel to it. Upon this
road marched the heavy artillery and baggage, con-
stituting the left wing of the British army, while the
elite, forming the right wing, and composed of light
troops, was kept constantly in advance on the heights
which bound the meadows.

The American army was south and west of the
British, its right wing on the river and its left resting
on the heights. We passed over a part of their camp
a little below Stillwater.*

* In May, 1821, 1 again visited these battlegrounds,
and availed myself of that opportunity, in company
with my faithful old guide, Major Buel, to explore
the camp of General Gates. It is situated about
three miles below Smith's tavern (the house where
General Fraser died), and is easily approached by a
cross road, which turns up the heights from the great
river road. It is not more than half a mile from the
river to the camp. I found it an interesting place,
and would recommend it to travelers to visit this
spot, as they will thus obtain a perfectly clear idea of

1 1 6 Professor Sillimans Letter.

A great part of the battleground was occupied by
lofty forest trees, principally pine, with here and there
a few cleared fields, of which the most conspicuous in
these sanguinary scenes was called Freeman's farm,
and is so called in General Burgoyne's plans. Such is

the relative position of the hostile armies, and of the
route pursued by the Americans when they marched
out to battle. The outlines of the camp are still
distinctly visible, being marked by the lines of de-
fence which were thrown up on the occasion, and
which, although depressed by time, will long be con-
spicuous, if they are not leveled by the plow. My
guide pointed out the ground occupied by the dif-
ferent corps of the army. Colonel Morgan, with the
Virginia riflemen, was in advance, on the right, that
is, nearest the river ; the advance was the post always
coveted by this incomparable corps, and surely none
could claim it with more propriety. There was much
danger that the enemy would attempt to storm the
camp of the Americans, and had they been successful
in either of the great battles (Sept. 19 and Oct. 7).
they would, without doubt, have attacked the camp,
The most interesting object that I saw in this
camp was the house which was General Gates's
headquarters. 1 am afraid that the traveler may not
long find this memorable house, for it was much
dilapidated — a part of the roof had fallen in, and
the winds whistled through the naked timbers. One
room was, however, tenantable, and was occupied by
a cooper and his family. From the style of the
panel-work and finishing of this room, the house ap-
pears to have been in its day one of the better sort
-the panels were large and handsome and the door

Professor Sillimaris Letter. 117

nearly the present situation of these heights, only
there is more cleared land ; the gigantic trees have
been principally felled, but a considerable number
remain as witnesses to posterity ; they still show the
wounds made in their trunks and branches by the
missiles of contending armies ; their roots still pene-
trate the soil that was made fruitful by the blood of
the brave, and their sombre foliage still murmurs
with the breeze, which once sighed as it bore the de-
parting spirit along.

My veteran guide, warmed by my curiosity, and
recalling the feelings of his prime, led me, with
amazing rapidity, and promptitude, over fences and
ditches — through water and mire — through ravines

was still ornamented with brass handles. Here Sir
Francis Clark, aid-de-camp to General Burgoyne, be-
ing mortally wounded and taken prisoner, languished
and died. General Wilkinson has recorded some
interesting passages of his last moments, particularly
his animated discussions with General Gates on the
merits of the contest. The recollection of the fate
of this brave but unfortunate officer will always be
associated with this building while a single timber of
it remains. — Edition of 1824.

The house here referred to is the present (1895)
"old Neilson Farm House." It has been repaired,
and is in an excellent state of preservation, chiefly
through the efforts of the Hon. D. S. Potter, of Glens
Falls, N. Y. Mr. Potter, a trustee of the Saratoga
Monument Association, and a very patriotic man,
deserves great credit for his exertions to keep intact
the different sites of the Battle Grounds. — »£.

1 1 8 Professor Sillimaris Letter.

and defiles — through thick forests, and open fields —
and up and down very steep hills ; in short, through
many places, where, alone, I would not have ven-
tured ; but, it would have been shameful for me not
to follow where a man of seventy-five would lead,
and to hesitate to explore in peace, the ground, which
the defenders of their country, and their foes, once
trod in steps of blood.*

On our way to Freeman's farm,f we traced the line
of the British encampment, still marked by a breast
work of logs, now rotten, but retaining their forms ;
they were at the time covered with earth and the bar-

* My guide conducted me from the American camp
along the summit of the heights, by the same route,
which was pursued by our gallant countrymen, when
they advanced to meet their formidable foe, and I
had the satisfaction of treading the same ground
which they trod, in the silence and solemnity of im-
pending conflict.

In pursuing this route, the traveler, if accompanied
by an intelligent guide, will have a very interesting
opportunity of marking the exact places where the
advanced guards and front lines of the contending
armies met. In this manner we advanced quite to
Freeman's farm, the great scene of slaughter, and
thence descended again to the center of the British
encampment on the plains.

f There is a barn now standing near Freeman's
farm, one of the beams of which contains a six-pound
ball. It was imbedded in the tree out of which the
timber was cut ; and the builder considerately left
the ball in as a memento. — S.

Professor Sillimaris Letter. 119

rier between contending armies, is now a fence, to
mark the peaceful divisions of agriculture. This
breast work, I suppose to be a part of the line of en-
campment, occupied by General Burgoyne, after the
battle of the igth of September, and which was
stormed on the evening of the 7th of October.

The old man showed me the exact spot, where an
accidental skirmish, between advanced parties of the
two armies, soon brought on the general and bloody
battle of September 19.

This was on Freeman's farm, a field which was
then cleared, although surrounded by forest. The
British picket here occupied a small house,* when a
part of Colonel Morgan's corps fell in with, and im-
mediately drove them from it, leaving the house
almost " encircled with their dead."f The pursuing

* Major Forbes, of the British army, states, that
the American picket occupied the house ; both facts
might have been true at different periods of the
affair.

f The role which Morgan played in the defeat of
Burgoyne, and also the ungrateful treatment he ex-
perienced at the hands of the quasi conquerer,
Gates, is shown by the following extract from Lees
Memoirs :

" When it is considered that the glory of this was
largely shared in by a number of gallant leaders and
their commands, most of whom found frequent op-
portunities during the struggle to distinguish them-
selves, honorable testimony from General Burgoyne,
in reference to Colonel Morgan and his corps, is sig-

I2O Professor Sillimarfs Letter.

party immediately, and very unexpectedly, fell in
with the British line, and were in part captured, and
the rest dispersed.

nificant of the superiority which he assigned them.
On his introduction to Morgan, after the capitula-
tion, he took him warmly by the hand, with the ob-
servation, ' Sir, you command the finest regiment in
the world.'

" But, notwithstanding the important services which
Morgan rendered in the campaign — services which
won him the praises of the army and made his name
familiar with friends and foes throughout the country
— they were not deemed worthy of more than a
cursory notice in General Gates's dispatches. His
name was not even mentioned in the official account
of the surrender, to the accomplishment of which he
had contributed so largely. This was the more ex-
traordinary from the fact that General Gates had not
only asked Washington for him, but had, from his
first arrival at the camp to the surrender, evinced a
high degree of confidence in his military character
and a friendly regard for him personally. Before a
week had elapsed after the closing scenes of the cam-
paign, however, this conduct had undergone a total
change. Gates not only denied Morgan justice in
his communications to Congress, but in their official
and personal intercourse treated him with marked
reserve.

'The clue to this otherwise inexplicable circum-
stance is probably furnished in the following anec-
dote, related by Morgan himself: Immediately after
the surrender, Morgan visited Gates on business,
when he was taken aside by the general and confi-
dentially told that the main army was extremely

Professor Sillimaris Letter. 121

This incident occurred at half-past twelve o'clock,
there was an intermission till one, when the action
was sharply renewed ; but it did not become general;

dissatisfied with the conduct of the war by the com-
mander-in-chief, and that several of the best officers
threatened to resign unless a change took place.
Morgan perfectly understood the views of Gates in
this conference, although he was then a stranger to
the correspondence which he had held with Conway
and others, and sternly replied, ' I have one favor to
ask of you, sir, which is, never to mention that de-
testible subject to me again ; for under no other man
than Washington, as commander-in-chief, would I
ever serve.'

"From this time until the spring of 1781 all inti-
macy between Gates and Morgan ceased. A day or
two after the foregoing interchange of views, Gene-
ral Gates gave a dinner to the principal officers of
the British army. A large number of American offi-
cers were invited, but Morgan was not among the
number. So signal a mark of Gates's unfriendliness
to Morgan could not pass unobserved, either by him-
self or by his brother officers. The cause was buried
in the bosom of the parties themselves, and con-
jecture, though widespread, was at a loss to account
for it. Before the entertainment was over, however,
the petty indignity recoiled with severity upon its
author. Morgan had occasion, during the evening,
to seek an interview with General Gates on business
connected with his command. He was ushered into
the dining-room, and having arranged the matters in
hand, was permitted by Gates to withdraw without
even the empty ceremony of an introduction to the
16

122 Professor Sillimaris Letter.

till three, from which time it raged with unabated
fury, till night.

General Burgoyne states that there was scarcely
ever an interval of a minute in the smoke, when some
British officer was not shot by the American riflemen,

British officers present. A number of the latter,
struck by the commanding figure and noble mien of
the colonel, and noticing that he was a field officer,
inquired his name as soon as he had retired. On
learning that it was Colonel Morgan, they instantly
rose to a man from the table, overtook him in the
road, and severally taking him by the hand, made
themselves known to him, frankly declaring, at the
same time, that they had felt him severely on the
field.

" British officers had good reason to know him.
He frequently told his men, whom he familiarly
called his boys, to shoot at those who wore epau-
lettes, rather than the poor fellows who fought for
sixpence a day, and the sequel proved that he was
obeyed to the letter. At the first glance many would
condemn a practice of this kind, as adding unneces-
sarily to the sanguinary features of war. But this
constitutes one of the principal arguments in its de-
fence. Every additional horror which war acquires
lessens in a corresponding degree the likelihood of a
resort to it, and thus tends to perpetuate the bless-
ings of peace. The primary object of battles being
the defeat of an opponent, few means the necessary
to its accomplishment are considered illegitimate.
Among these is certainly not included that whereby
an adversary is struck in the most vital part, else why
employ marksmen, whose business it is to exercise

Professor Sillimans Letter. 123

posted in the trees, in the rear and on the flank of
their own line. A shot which was meant for General
Burgoyne, severely wounded Captain Green, an aid-

their skill against particular objects ? Even veteran
soldiers have thus been thrown into confusion, and be-
come little more efficient than an undisciplined mob.

The following from the Saratoga Journal, August
3, 1885, entitled "An Interesting Historical Relic,"
is here in point: "Mr. Jesse B. Neville, of Colum-
bus, Ohio, who has been enjoying the summer at
Dr. Strong's, is the owner of a highly interesting
memorial of the Revolution, which he has kindly
consented to let our visitors and citizens see. It is
the gold medal, containing $500 worth of that pre-
cious metal, presented by Congress to General Daniel
Morgan, the heroic commander of Morgan's famous
Riflemen, who did such splendid work in the battles
which compelled Burgoyne's surrender. The occa-
sion of this splendid gift was the great victory won
by Morgan over Colonel Tarleton, the scourge of
the Carolinas, in the important battle of Cowpens,
January 17, 1781. There were no artificers compe-
tent to do such work in America at that time, so the
order was sent to France, and the scenes depicted
were designed by Dupre, a noted artist of that
friendly nation. On the front of the medal is a
scene showing General Morgan, who was the most
noted Indian fighter of his day, in the act of being
crowned with a laurel wreath by one of the original
sons of the forest. The inscription reads : " Danieli
Morgan, Duci Exercitus. Comitia Americana." On
the reverse is a very finely executed relief, showing
Morgan leading a charge against the fleeing British,

124 Professor Silliman s Letter..

de-camp of General Phillips : the mistake was owing
to the captain's having a richly laced furniture to his
saddle, which caused the marksman to mistake him
for the general.

Such was the ardor of the Americans, that, as
General Wilkeson states, the wounded men, after
having their wounds dressed, in many instances, re-
turned again into the battle.

The battle of the seventh of October was fought
on the same ground, but was not so stationary ; it
commenced farther to the right, and extended, in its
various periods, over more surface, eventually occu-
pying not only Freeman's farm, but it was urged by
the Americans, to the very camp of the enemy,
which, towards night, was most impetuously stormed,
and in part carried.*

with flags flying, and wreaths of battle smoke sailing
away in the distance. The work is exquisitely done
and its artistic value is very great. On this side the
inscription reads: "Victoria Libertatis Vindex."
Fugatis captis aut csesis ad Cowpens Hosbitus.
XVII Jan. MDCCLXXXI. The medal will be left
on exhibition at E. R. Waterbury's jewelry store,
near the Arcade entrance, for several days."

* It was the intention of the Americans to renew
the battle on the following day, viz., the 8th, and
why it was not renewed has ever been a mystery —
some writers attributing it to the lack of ammunition.
This explanation I give in my " Burgoyne's Cam-
paign." Since that work was published, however, I
have come into possession of a MS. map of the ac-

Professor Sillimaris Letter. 125

The interval between the igth of September and
the /th of October, was one of great anxiety to both
armies ; " not a night passed," says General Bur-
goyne, " without firing, and sometimes concerted at-
tacks upon our pickets ; no foraging party could be
made without great detachments to cover it ; it was
the plan of the enemy to harass the army by constant
alarms, and their superiority of numbers enabled them
to attempt it, without fatigue to themselves. By
being habituated to fire, our soldiers became indiffer-
ent to it, and were capable of eating or sleeping when
it was very near them ; but I do not believe either
officer or soldier ever slept during that interval, with-
out his clothes, or that any general officer, or com-
mander of a regiment, passed a single night without
being upon his legs occasionally, at different hours,
and constantly, an hour before daylight."

The battle of the /th was brought on by a move-
ment of General Burgoyne, who caused 1,500 men,
with ten pieces of artillery, to march toward the left
of the American army for the purpose of discovering

tion of the 7th, made by Col. Rufus Putnam (a cousin
of Gen. Israel), which explains the seeming mystery.
On this map there are put down some deep ravines
between Burgoyne's Hospital and Wilbur's Basin,
and the American forces, with this remark on the
map in Putnam's hand-writing: "British redoubts
having in front a deep hollow ground full of trees
and logs which prevented an attack on the British
army that (the 8th) day."

126 Professor Sillimaris Letter.

whether it was possible to force a passage ; or in case
a retreat of the royal army should become indispen-
sable, to dislodge the Americans from their intrench-
ments, and also to cover a foraging excursion, which
had now become pressingly necessary.* It was about
the middle of the afternoon that the British were
observed advancing, and the Americans, with small
arms, lost no time in attacking the British grenadiers
and artillery, although under a tremendous fire from
the latter ; the battle soon extended along the whole
line : Colonel Morgan, at the same moment, attacked
with his riflemen, on the right wing; Colonel Acland,
the commander of the grenadiers, fell wounded ; the
grenadiers were defeated and most of the artillery
taken, after great slaughter, f

* Also an error. " The foraging party," says Gen.
Riedesel, " was made the day previous to the battle
of the 7th." The gathering of forage while the army
were forming for battle was merely an incident.
Hence the confusion which has arisen on this sub-
ject.

f In this connection it is not inappropriate to quote
the following from the N. Y. Tribune, Dec. 15, 1885 :
1 The Earl of Carnarvon, late colonial secretary of
Great Britain, recently sent to William L. Stone a
tiny gold slipper that was worn by his great-grand-
mother, Lady Harriet Acland, while she was with
Burgoyne's army during the American Revolution.
The note accompanying the gift, referring to Mr.
Stone's memoir of Lady Acland, said: It is a matter
of no uncommon pleasure to me to see my family

Professor Sillimaris Letter. 127

At the end of a most sanguinary contest, of less
than one hour, the discomfiture and retreat of the
British became general, and they had scarcely re-
gained their camp before the lines were stormed with
the greatest fury, and part of Lord Balcarras's camp
was for a short time in our possession.

I was on the ground where the grenadiers, and
where the artillery were stationed. " Here, upon
this hill " (said my hoary guide), " on the very spot
where we now stand, the dead men lay, thicker than
you ever saw sheaves on a fruitful harvest field."
" Were they British or Americans ?" " Both," he re-
plied, ubut principally British." I suppose that
it is of this ground that General Wilkinson remarks,
" it presented a scene of complicated horror and ex-
history thus preserved on the other side of the At-
lantic. It renews a feeling that very often comes
across me, that the identity and sympathies of race
remain wholly untouched by a hundred years of sepa-
ration— perhaps, are all the stronger for the nomi-
nal differences. Last year, when I was in America,
I only felt that I was in another and distant part of
England." Since this was written Lord Carnarvon
has died. Still, it is a pleasure to record his feelings
toward us in America.

Col. Acland, when wounded, was taken to Joseph
Bird's tent, where his wife nursed him. MS. letter
to the editor from B. R. L. Westover, of Castleton,
Vt, Feb. 10, 1886. Mr. Westover is a descendant of
Bird. For a long sketch of Col, and Lady Acland
see my " Burgoyne Ballads." S.

128 Professor Sillimaris Letter.

ultation. In the square space of twelve or fifteen
yards lay eighteen grenadiers in the agony of death ;
and three officers, propped up against stumps of
trees, two of them mortally wounded, bleeding, and
almost speechless."

My guide, proceeding with his narrative, said :
" There stood a British field-piece, which had been
twice taken and retaken, and finally remained in our
possession : I was on the ground, and said to an
American colonel, who came up at the moment,
' Colonel, we have taken this piece, and now we want
you to swear it true to America / so the colonel swore
it true, and we turned around and fired upon the
British with their own cannon and with their own
ammunition, still remaining unconsumed in their own
boxes."

I was solicitous to see the exact spot where Gene-
ral Eraser received his mortal wound. My old guide
knew it perfectly well, and pointed it out to me. It
is in a meadow, just on the right of the road, after pass-
ing a blacksmith's shop and going south a few rods.
The blacksmith's shop is on a road which runs par-
allel to the Hudson — it stands elevated, and over-
looks Freeman's farm.*

*The great-grandfather of Mr. T. L. Stone, of
Varysburgh, N. Y., viz. : Mr. Russell Stone, was near
the spot at the time that Fraser fell. He was a pri-
vate under Col. Thaddeus Cook. He was wounded
in the hand, but his wound was not so serious as to
disqualify him from service.

Professor Sillimaris Letter. 129

I saw various places where the dead were interred ;
a rivulet or creek passes through the battleground
and still washes out from its banks the bones of the
slain. This rivulet is often mentioned in the accounts
of these battles, and the deep ravine through which
it passes ; on our return we followed this ravine and
rivulet through the greater part of their course, till
they united with the Hudson.

Farm-houses are dispersed here and there over the
field of battle, and the people often find, even now,
gun-barrels and bayonets, cannon-balls, grape shot,
bullets and human bones. Of the three last I took
from one of these people some painful specimens ;
some of the bullets were battered and misshaped,
evincing that they had come into collision with op-
posing obstacles.

Entire skeletons are occasionally found ; a man
told me that in ploughing during the late summer,
he turned one up, and it was not covered more than
three inches with earth ; it lay on its side, and the
arms in the form of a bow ; it was, probably, some
solitary victim that never was buried. Such are the
memorials still existing of these great military events ;
great, not so much on account of the numbers of the
actors, as from the momentous interests at stake, and
from the magnanimous efforts to which they gave
origin.

I would not envy that man his state of feeling
who could visit such fields of battle without emotion,
or who (being an American) could fail to indulge
17

130 Professor Sillimans Letter.

admiration and affection for the soldiers and martyrs
of liberty, and respect for the valor of their enemies.
Having taken my guide home to breakfast, we made
use of his knowledge of the country to identify with
certainty the place of General Eraser's interment*

* A full account of Gen. Fraser will be found in
any of my previous works. One anecdote, however,
of him, which I had not come across at the time, is
here given to illustrate his true nobility of character.
It is taken from Jonathan Eastman's Life of Stark
(Concord, 1831), now a very rare work: "Two of
the American officers taken at Hubbardstown, relate
the following anecdote of him. He saw that they
were in distress, as their Continental paper would
not pass with the English, and offered to loan them
as much as they wished for their present circumstances.
They took three guineas each. He remarked to
them: 'Gentlemen, take what you wish — give me
your due bills, and when we reach Albany I trust to
your honor to take them up, for we shall doubtless
over-run the country, and I shall probably have an
opportunity of seeing you again. Gen. Fraser fell
in the battle of the ;th of October ; the notes were
consequently never redeemed, but the signers of them
could not refrain from shedding tears at the fate of
this gallant and generous enemy." Now, these tears
thus shed were all well enough in their way, but
Gen. Eraser's family, in England, were well known,
and no difficulty would have been experienced in dis-
covering his heirs and forwarding the sum lent by
him to them. Perhaps they did so, of which, how-
ever, I have my doubts ; but it would have been
much more satisfactory had Eastman been able to

Professor Sillimans Letter. 131

General Burgoyne mentions two redoubts that were
thrown up on the hills behind his hospital ; they are
both still very distinct, and in one of these which is
called the great redoubt by the officers of General
Burgoyne's army, General Fraser was buried. It is
true it has been disputed, which is the redoubt in
question, but our guide stated to us, that within his
knowledge a British sergeant, three or four years
after the surrender of Burgoyne's army, came and
pointed out the grave. We went to the spot ; it is
within the redoubt, on the top of the hill nearest to
the house where the general died, and corresponds
with the plate in Anbury s Travels, taken from an
original drawing made by Sir Francis Clarke, aid-de-
camp to General Burgoyne, and with the statement
of the general in his defense, as well as with the ac-
count of Madam Reidesel.

The place of the interment was formerly desig-
nated by a little fence surrounding the grave. I was
here in 1 797, twenty-two years ago ; the grave was
then distinctly visible.*

On the present occasion I did not visit the British
fortified camp.f When I was here in 1 797 I examined

state that the money thus so generously loaned had
been returned ! Tears are certainly a cheap method
of paying one's debts !

* Now (1895), two tall pines stand like giant sen-
tinels on top of this hill, watching over the dead.

f In May, 1821, I again visited this fortified camp,
and found it as perfect as it was when I saw it nearly

132 Professor Sillimaris Letter.

it particularly. It was then in perfect preservation
(I speak of the encampment of the British troops
upon the hill near the Fish kil), the parapet was high
and covered with grass and shrubs, and the platforms
of earth to support the fieldpieces were still in good
condition. No devastation of any consequence had
been committed, except by the credulous, who had
made numerous excavations in the breastworks and
various parts of the encampment for the purpose of
discovering the money which the officers were sup-
posed to have buried and abandoned. It is scarcely
necessary to add that they never found any money,
for private property was made sacred by the conven-
tion, and even the public military chest was not dis-
turbed ; the British retained every shilling that it
contained. Under such circumstances to have buried
their money would have been almost as great a folly

twenty-three years before, and almost every particu-
lar stated in the text was strictly applicable to it. It
is about a mile from the river, and was certainly
chosen with great good judgment, and had the Ameri-
can army attempted to take it by storm, it would evi-
dently have cost them very dear. [Why the Ameri-
cans did not attempt it, see note ante.] While at
Ballston Springs during the late summer, some gen-
tlemen of our party made an excursion to this place,
and I learned from them, with extreme regret that
the plow was passing over the fortified camp of Gene-
ral Burgoyne and that its fine parapet would soon
be levelled so that scarcely a trace of it would remain.
See note in advance about Eraser's remains.

Professor Sillimans Letter. 133

as the subsequent search for it. This infatuation has
not, however, gone by, even to this hour, and still,
every year new pits are excavated by the insatiable
money diggers.*

We arrived at this interesting spot (the field of
the surrender), in a very fine morning ; the sun shone
with great splendor upon the flowing Hudson and
upon the beautiful heights and the luxuriant meadows,
now smiling in rich verdure and exhibiting images of
tranquility and loveliness very opposite to the horrors
of war which were once witnessed here.

* " This appears to be a very common popular de-
lusion ; in many places on the Hudson, and about
the lakes where the armies had lain or moved, we
found money pits dug, and in one place they told us
that a man bought of a poor widow the right of dig-
ging in her ground for the. hidden treasure." Not-
withstanding Professor Silliman's remark — true in
the main — a laborer some thirty years since, in dig-
ging in Leggett's barn-yard, the site of the great re-
doubt on which was Freeman's farm, found enough
gold with which to buy a farm on the shore of
Saratoga Lake. This incident reminds one of the
father of Mr. William Alexander English (Buck
English, as he was called), whose father, a day la-
borer, being at work on the lands of Shoonhill,
County of Tipperary, Ireland, found a large earthen
vase filled with gold, supposed to have been hidden
there upon the arrival of Cromwell at the siege of
Clonmell. With this money old Mr. English pur-
chased lands and houses. See previous note about
Congdon's gold.

*34 Professor Sillimans Letter.

The Fish kil, swollen by abundant rains (as it was
on the morning of October 10, 1777, when General
Burgoyne passed it with his artillery), now poured a
turbid torrent along its narrow channel, and roaring
down the declivity of the hills, hastened to mingle its
waters with those of the Hudson.

We passed the ruins of General Schuyler's house,
which are still conspicuous, and hastened to the field
where the British troops grounded their arms. Al-
though, in 1797, I paced it over in juvenile enthusi-
asm,* I felt scarcely less interested on the present
occasion, and again walked over the whole tract. It
is a beautiful meadow, situated at the intersection of
the Fish kil, with the Hudson, and north of the
former. There is nothing now to distinguish the
spot, except the ruins of old Fort Hardy, built during
the French wars, and the deeply interesting historical
associations which will cause this place to be memora-
ble to the latest generation. Thousands and thou-
sands yet unborn will visit Saratoga with feelings of
the deepest interest, and it will not be forgotten till
Thermopylae and Marathon and Bannockburn and
Waterloo shall cease to be remembered. There it
will be said were the last entrenchments of a proud
invading army ; on that spot stood their formidable
park of artillery — and here, on this now peaceful

* In company with the Hon. John Elliott, now a
senator from Georgia, and John Wynn, Esq., from
the same State. Note to ist edition.

Professor Sillimaris Letter. 135

meadow they piled their arms ! their arms no longer
terrible, but now converted into a glorious trophy of
victory !

I have adverted but little to the sufferings of the
American army, because but little, comparatively, is
known of what they individually endured. Excepting
the inevitable casualties of battle, they must have
suffered much less than their enemies, for they soon
ceased to be the flying and became the attacking and
triumphant party. Colonels Colburn, Adams, Fran-
cis and many other brave officers and men gave up
their lives as the price of their country's liberty, and
very many carried away with them the scars produced
by honorable wounds. The bravery of the American
army was fully acknowledged by their adversaries.

"At all times," said Lord Balcarras, "when I was
opposed to the rebels they fought with great courage
and obstinacy. We were taught by experience that
neither their attacks nor resistance was to be de-
spised." Speaking of the retreat of the Americans
from Ticonderoga, and of their behaviour at the bat-
tle of Hubberton, Lord Balcarras adds : " Circum-
stanced as the enemy were, as an army very hard
pressed in their retreat, they certainly behaved with
great gallantry;" of the attack on the lines on the
evening of the 7th of October, he says : " The lines
were attacked, and with as much fury as the fire of
small arms can admit."

Lord Balcarras had said that he never knew the
Americans to defend their entrenchments, but added :

136 Professor Sillimaris Letter.

" The reason why they did not defend their entrench-
ments was that they always marched out of them and
attacked us." Captain Money, in answer to the ques-
tion whether on the igth of September the Americans
disputed the field with obstinacy, answered : " They
did, and the fire was much hotter than I ever knew it
anywhere, except at the affair at Fort Anne ; " and
speaking of the battle of October ;th, and of the
moment when the Americans, with nothing but small
arms, were marching up to the British artillery, he
adds : " I was very much astonished to hear the shot
from the enemy fly so thick after our cannonade had
lasted a quarter of an hour." General Burgoyne
gives it as his opinion that as rangers, " perhaps there
are few better in the world than the corps of Virginia
riflemen which acted under Colonel Morgan." He
says, speaking of the battle of September igth, that
" few actions have been characterized by more ob-
stinacy in attack or defense. The British bayonet
was repeatedly tried ineffectually. "

Remarking upon the battle of the 7th of October,
he observes: " If there be any persons who continue
to doubt that the Americans possess the quality and
faculty of fighting, call it by whatever term they
please, they are of a prejudice that it would be very
absurd longer to contend with ; " he says that in this
action the British troops " retreated hard pressed,
but in good order," and that " the troops had scarcely
entered the camp when it was stormed with great

Professor Sillimaris Letter. 137

fury, the enemy rushing to the lines under a severe
fire of grape shot and small arms."

In a private letter addressed to Lord George Ger-
main, after the surrender, he says : " I should now
hold myself unjustifiable, if I did not confide to your
lordship my opinion upon a near inspection of the
rebel troops. The standing corps that I have seen
are disciplined. I do not hazard the term, but apply
it to the great fundamental points of military insti-
tution, sobriety, subordination, regularity and cour-
age."

It is very gratifying to every real American to find
that for so great a prize his countrymen (their enemies
themselves being judges) contended so nobly, and
that their conduct for bravery, skill and humanity
will stand the scrutiny of all future ages.

From the enemy it becomes us not to withhold the
commendation that is justly due ; all that skill and
valor could effect they accomplished, and they were
overwhelmed at last by complicated distress, and by
very superior numbers, amounting at the time of the
surrender, probably, to three for one, although the
disparity was much less in the two great battles.

The vaunting proclamation of General Burgoyne
at the commencement of the campaign, some of his
boasting letters, written during the progress of it,
and his devastation of private property reflect no
honor on his memory. But, in general, he appears
to have been a humane and honorable man, a scholar
and a gentleman, a brave soldier and an able com-
18

138 Professor Sillimans Letter.

mander. Some of his sentiments have a higher
moral tone than is common with men of his profes-
sion and have probably procured for him more respect
than all his battles.* Speaking of the battle of the
7th, he says: " In the course of the action a shot
had passed through my hat and another had torn my
waistcoat. I should be sorry to be thought at any
time insensible to the protecting hand of Providence ;
but I ever more particularly considered (and I hope
not superstitiously), a soldier's hairbreadth escapes
as incentives to duty, a marked renewal of the trust
of being, for the purposes of a public station ; and
under that reflection to lose our fortitude by giving
way to our affections ; to be divested by any possible
self-emotion from meeting a present exigency with
our best faculties, were at once dishonor and impiety."
Thus have I adverted, I hope not with too much
particularity, to some of the leading circumstances of
the greatest military event which has ever occurred
in America, but compared with the whole extent and
diversity of that campaign the above notices, how-
ever extended, are few and brief. I confess I have
reviewed them with a very deep interest, and have

* This estimate of Burgoyne seems to be — after
the mist of prejudice has been lifted — a just one.
Indeed, seen from after standpoints, Burgoyne does
not deserve the opprobrium cast at the time upon
him. Time rectifies all things — even the reputa-
tions of the confederate generals of the late civil
war.

Professor Sillimaris Letter. 139

been willing to hear some of the distinguished actors
speak in their own language. Should the notice of
these great events tend, in any instance, to quench
the odious fires of party, and to rekindle those of
genuine patriotism — should it revive in anyone a
veneration for the virtues of those men who faced
death in every form, regardless of their own lives, and
bent only on securing to posterity the precious bless-
ings which we now enjoy, and above all, should we
thus be led to cherish a higher sense of gratitude to
heaven for our unexampled privileges, and to use
them more temperately and wisely, the time occupied
in this sketch will not have been spent in vain. His-
tory presents no struggle for liberty which has in it
more of the moral sublime than that of the American
Revolution. It has been of late years too much for-
gotten in the sharp contentions of party, and he who
endeavors to withdraw the public mind from those
debasing conflicts and to fix it on the grandeur of
that great epoch — which, magnificent in itself, begins
now to wear the solemn livery of antiquity as it is
viewed through, the deepening twilight of half a cen
tury certainly performs a meritorious service and can
scarcely need a justification. The generation that
sustained the conflict is now almost passed away ; a
few hoary heads remain, seamed with honorable scars
— a few experienced guides can still attend us to the
fields of carnage and point out the places where they
and their companions fought and bled and where
sleep the bones of the slain. But these men will

140 Professor Sillimaris Letter.

soon be gone ; tradition and history will, however,
continue to recite their deeds, and the latest genera-
tions will be taught to venerate the defenders of our
liberties — to visit the battle-grounds which were
moistened with their blood, and to thank the mighty
God of battles that the arduous conflict terminated
in the entire establishment of the liberties of this
country.

VISIT TO THE BATTLE GROUND IN 1820 BY
DR. THEODORE DWIGHT.

A drive over from Ballston Spa brought us to the
Saratoga battle grounds. I hate the details of slaugh-
ter ever since I have overcome the savage and heathen
impressions I received with my "liberal education."
I learned to admire them from the notes of admira-
tion with which the classics abound for those notori-
ous butchers who, in former times did so much

* Dr. Theodore Dwight, who came to his death
October 16, 1866, through injuries received from the
New Jersey Railroad Co., was a nephew of President
Dwight of Yale college, and a son of the distinguished
Hartford editor, who was the immediate predecessor
of the late Col. William L. Stone in the editorship
of the old Hartford Mirror. Dr. Dwight, at the
time of his death, was the secretary of the American
Ethnological Society — a society of which he and the
late Albert Gallatin were the founders. He was also
the author of a number of entertaining works of
travel, among which are his Tours in Italy, the
Northern Traveller, and Summer Tours. He was
likewise for a long time editor of Dwighfs American
Magazine. He was also the one who, in 1820,
brought Saratoga Springs into extensive notice by
the first real guide-book of the United States that
had ever been published.

142 Dr. Theodore Dwighfs Letter.

business under different firms — Alexander, Hannibal
& Co., Caesar & Brothers. I therefore did not regret
that the battles on this ground amounted only to a
matter of a thousand or so killed on both sides — a
mere skirmish, in the opinion of an European. Gen.
Wilkinson tells facts which show that there was ex-
citement enough here to raise in some individuals the
most barbarous and blood-thirsty spirit.

" Major Buel, our guide, appeared sometimes at
fault, but never being disposed to acknowledge it,
generally found a reply to every question. Two of
the party differed about the spot on which Gen.
Fraser fell and inquired of him, ' Where was Gen.
Fraser wounded?' ' Let me see,' said he. ' I believe
in the bowels, pretty much.'"*

* It was said at the time by Burgoyne's surgeons
that had not General Fraser's stomach been distended
by a hearty breakfast he had eaten just before going
into action he would doubtless have recovered from
his wound. This seems to be corroborated by an
item taken from the St. Louis Globe-Democrat of
October, 1893. The article, which is headed, " Empty
Stomachs Safer in Battle," is as follows : " Surgeon-
General Sternberg, of the army, and Dr. A. C. Ber-
nays, of St. Louis, had flocked together and were
discussing gun-shot wounds in the lower part of the
body. Dr. Bernays greatly interested Surgeon-Gene-
ral Sternberg by a proposition he laid down that when
a man is shot in the abdomen shortly after eating a
hearty meal the danger is much greater. ' A case of
that kind should be operated upon in every instance,'
said Dr. Bernays. * If the bowels are empty or nearly

Dr. Theodore Dwighfs Letter. 143

We visited, also, the headquarters of Gen. Bur-
goyne.* The house (Smith's) stands by the road-
side, but the place where it then was is a spot at the
foot of the hill [where Fraser is buried], and about
200 yards from the river. The cellar is still to be
seen [now, 1894] in a field near an apple tree, a
little north of the road that crosses the canal.

Willard's mountain is an eminence a few miles off,
on the opposite side of the river. During the last
battle the Americans had a few cannon on the rising
ground above the eastern shore, a quarter of a mile
above Smith's, and thence proceeded the shot of
which the Baroness Riedesel speaks. Several ladies
of distinction were its inmates at the time when the
British troops were here, being the wives of some of
the principal officers. The house was converted into
an hospital during the second battle, and Gen. Fraser
died on the 8th of October in what is now the bar-
room. His grave is on the hill back of the house.

I heard the late General Van Cortland,f a colonel
in the New York line and a participator in this bat-
so, the same wound may be treated without opera-
tion.'

' Applying that theory to soldiers ? ' remarked the
surgeon-general tentatively.

' I would say they ought to do their fighting before
breakfast,' put in the specialist."

* An error, as mentioned in a preceding note to
" Mrs. Dwight's visit to the Saratoga battle ground."

t Died at Sandy Hill, N. Y., in 1822.

144 Dr- Theodore Dwighfs Letter.

tie, say that he was not brought into action until late
in the afternoon of the iQth of September, when he
was ordered by Arnold to take part beyond the left
of our line, and engage in action or not as he might
judge proper. He engaged a regiment of Hessians
[Brunswickers], of whose short guns our soldiers did
not think much, and drove them back. One of his
officers was wounded by his side, and he placed him
upon his horse. While pursuing, he met a regiment
of British light infantry on his flank and partly in his
rear, advancing and firing, but without seeing them
in the darkness. He halted in a foot-path nearly
parallel to them, about a foot lower than the surface
of the ground, ordering his men not to fire till they
should see the enemy's flash, and then aim a little
below it. Directly the flash was seen all along their
line, the fire was immediately returned and this
checked them. He then went around to his officers
and ordered them to withdraw quietly, and returned
to camp. After an engagement of an hour and a
half he had lost one man to every five and a half in
his regiment. Col. Cilley * lost but one out of seven
in five or six hours.

While in the vicinity of Bemis's Heights I was re-
minded of several anecdotes I had heard at different

* Col. Cilley is well known by the readers of Gen.
"Wilkinson's Memoirs," as having been found by
him at the battle of the ;th October, astride of a
brass twelve-pounder and exulting in its capture.
The following anecdotes of Col. Cilley are, however,

Dr. Theodore Dwighfs Letter. 145

periods and from different persons, relating to the
battles here and at the Wallomsac, the last of which
is usually called the battle of Bennington. What
must have been the state of the country when the
panic caused by the desertion of Ticonderoga was

not so generally known — both of which testify to
his courage and patriotism.

As a prelude to the engagement of the yth, a
British flanking party was directed to turn the Ameri-
can wing, where Cilley was posted, and who was
ordered to counteract the movement. As the parties
approached each other, and a few scattering trees
only intervened, the British colonel was heard to give
the order, " Fix bayonets and charge the damned
rebels." Col. Cilley, who was near enough to hear,
responded loudly enough for the enemy to under-
stand, "That is a game two can play at — Charge!
by God, and we will try it ! " The Americans charged
at the word, and rushing upon the enemy, discharged
a volley in their faces, who broke and fled without
tarrying to cross bayonets with the " damned rebels,"
leaving a number of their comrades on the field.
Eastman, also, in his Life of Stark, states that at the
battle of Monmouth, when Gen. Lee was on his re-
treat, Cilley's regiment checked the pursuit of the
enemy and drove them back in turn. Washington,
who at that moment arrived, delighted at the gallant
stand made by the New Hampshire regiment, in-
quired, "What troops are these?" "True-blooded
Yankees, sir," was the colonel's emphatic reply. In
the retreat from Ticonderoga, a son of Col. Cilley
was left behind and fell into the hands of the British,
who, ascertaining that he was the son of a distin-

19

146 Dr. Theodore Dwighfs Letter.

such that although a long delay took place before
Gen. Burgoyne began to march from Whitehall, he
met no opposition until he reached this spot. Exer-
tions were made by the patriotic who were yet un-
discouraged, to raise the people in arms ; but how
was it to be expected that the militia could stop the
course of an army, before which regular troops had
fled out of the principal fortress of the country ? The
history of the time has been written several times
and related a thousand. I will, therefore, leave my
readers to books and only repeat two or three tales I
have heard from private sources. Word of mouth
has often a charm, because it conveys feeling, and
that everybody can understand.

" My father," said a gentleman I once conversed
with, " lived in Berkshire county, Mass., when the
news came that the Hessians [Brunswickers] were
going to seize the stores on the Wallomsac creek,
and all the force of the country was wanted. He

guished officer in the American army, brought him
to Burgoyne. That general, after treating him kindly,
set him at liberty and furnished him with a horse and
saddle-bag full of his " proclamations." These he
carried to his father, who, taking one of them, in-
dignantly tore it in pieces, and throwing them to the
winds, exclaimed, " So shall their army be scattered."
One of Col. Cilley's grandsons, Jonathan, M. C.,
from New Hampshire, 1837, met his death in a duel
with Wm. Graves, a fellow-congressman from
Kentucky. The affair excited unusual attention at
the time.

Dr. Theodore Dwighfs Letter. 147

was a hardy farmer and well known thereabouts, so
that he had been chosen captain of a company of old
men, exempt from service by age, which had been
raised for any case of extremity. This company,
which was called the ' Silver Grays,' in allusion to
their hoary hair, set off for the scene of action imme-
diately and was on the ground on the morning of the
battle in time to have a part assigned in the attack
made upon the entrenched line of the enemy. On
account of the respectability of the company they
were left to choose their place, and agreed to attack
the Tory fort, as a redoubt on an eminence was called,
which had been intrusted to the Americans accom-
panying the Hessian troops. The captain informed
his men that it was his intention to approach their
object through a ravine which he observed led in that
direction, to enjoy all the shelter it might afford.
' Captain,' said a large and powerful man in the prime
of life, stepping forward pale and trembling, ' I am
not going to fight; I came to lead back the horses.'
' Go, then,' said the captain with indignation ; * we
shall do better without a coward in our number.

Deacon ,' said he to a little, old man, shrivelled

with age, ' you are too feeble to bear the fatigues of
the day. It is my pleasure that you stand sentry
over the baggage.'

4 With your leave, captain,' said the old man, step-
ping forward and making the soldier's sign of respect
to a superior with as much the air of a youth as he
could, 'with your leave I will have a pull at 'em first.'

148 Dr. Theodore Dwighfs Letter.

The company expressed their admiration at his
spirit, and under the feelings it produced, succeeding
as it did the display of arrant cowardice in a younger
man, they marched on a quick step toward the enemy.
When they reached the end of the ravine, the captain
intended to form an attack, supposing they must yet
be at some distance from the redoubt. Instead of
this, on looking up he found himself almost at the
base of it and the Tories taking aim at him from
above. In an instant he lay upon the ground, a bul-
let having passed through his foot, and a friend near
him ran to raise him, supposing him killed. He
sprang upon his feet, however, and just then seeing
a red-coat hurrying across a field at a distance, a
thought came into his head to encourage his men and
he cried out, ' Come on ! they run, they run ! ' The
old man climbed up, jumped into the fort and in a
moment the 'Silver Grays' had complete possession
of it without the loss of one of their number."

From the battle ground I went to Ballston
Springs. * * *

VISIT OF HON. WILLIAM WIRT IN AUGUST,

1821.*

" Washington, Aug. 29, 1821.
MY DEARLY BELOVED BROTHER:

* * On returning from Lake George we fell
upon Burgoyne's track at Sandy Hill, a beautiful
little village on a high and commanding site on the
North river. Thence going down the river on the
eastern bank, two miles and a half, we came to old
Fort Edward. At this place there is a little village,
and while our horses were watering I procured a
Revolutionary bullet or two which had been got out
of the wall of the fort. We arrived at the village of
Saratoga [this was " old Saratoga," now Schuyler-
ville, and not the famous watering-place] to dinner —
the field on which Burgoyne laid down his arms, be-
ing immediately before us, about half a mile, and now
a beautiful piece of meadow land at the junction of
Fish-creek with the North river, which you can see
on the map. I have some relics also from this field

* This letter, written to Mr. Wirt's brother-in-law,
Pope, is, perhaps, one of the most charming and racy
letters of the whole of this series, but whoever has
read Wirt's " Life of Patrick Henry" would not ex-
pect anything otherwise from his pen.

150 Hon. William Wirfs Visit.

for you. You remember that Burgoyne was on his
retreat, endeavoring to get back to Fort Edward, and
thence into Canada, where, finding his retreat cut off,
he surrendered on this plain, — so, in following his
track down we came to the field of surrender before
we came to the battle grounds, where he had for the
first time become convinced of the erroneous estimate
he had made of the American character.

Having walked over the Field of Surrender and
pulled some boughs from a tree near the spot at
which Burgoyne's Marqued was pitched, we moved
down the river in the evening, and about an hour by
sun came to the house in which the celebrated Gene-
ral Fraser breathed his last [here follows in the let-
ter the often quoted and well-known account of
Fraser's death by Madame Riedesel, to whom the
writer acknowledges his indebtedness].

Well, sir, as I was saying, we arrived at this same
house at about an hour by the sun, and as good fortune
would have it, before we alighted another traveler
rode up, having just returned from reviewing the
battle-fields accompanied by old Ezra Buel, who had
been a guide to the American army in both the bat-
tles of the i Qth September and the ;th of October,
and was with our troops until the surrender. He is
now seventy-seven years of age, and his usual gait of
riding is twelve miles per hour on a very hard riding
horse. You will see honorable mention made of him
by Silliman. Not at all fatigued with the excursion
from which he had just returned, he wheeled about

Hon. William Wirfs Visit. 151

again and accompanied us with the utmost alacrity.
There, YOU should have been with me, my dear Pope,
to walk over the fields which had been the theatre of
such desperate strife — where the great cause of
liberty, too, was staked on the issue.

"And so," thought I, "this is the field on which
the famous battles of Stillwater were fought four and
forty years ago. Here did these grounds swarm
with armed men ! "

" Here Morgan was posted," said the old man, in-
terrupting my meditations. " Here was Arnold, then
a patriot and an excellent soldier," etc. And so the
old gentleman arranged the field and conjured up
before my eyes the whole host. Then he painted the
battles with great spirit — showed by what accidents
they had commenced on both occasions, and how
they became general — depicted the struggle in par-
ticular parts of the field, and enabled me to imagine
at times that I saw and heard all the tumult, agita-
tion, shouting, thunder and fury of a long and well-
contested field. Good heavens, what a warming il-
lusion ! Morgans eye of fire and bugle voice ! Arnold's
maniac and irresistible impetuosity * - the rattling

* In this connection the following extract from the
" Diary of Captain Wakefield," entitled " Unpublished
Recollections of 1777, "is in point:

" I shall never forget the opening scene of the first
day's conflict. The riflemen and light infantry were
ordered forward to clear the woods of the Indians.
Arnold rode up, and with his sword pointing to the

152 Hon. William Wirfs Visit.

of musketry, the sharp cracking of the rifles, the
deafening roar of the artillery, the animating shout
of the soldiery, the war-whoop of the Indians, the
encouraging and applauding cries of the officers, the
charge, the retreat, the rapid and regular evolution
at one point, the disorderly movement at another, the

enemy emerging from the woods into an opening
partially cleared, covered with stumps and fallen tim-
ber, addressing Morgan, he said, ' Colonel Morgan,
you and I have seen too many red-skins to be de-
ceived by that garb of paint and feathers ; they are
asses in lions' skins — Canadians and Tories ; let your
riflemen cure them of their borrowed plumes.'

" And so they did, for in less than fifteen minutes
the ' Wagon Boy,' with his Virginia riflemen, sent the
painted devils with a howl back to the British lines.
Morgan was in his glory, catching the inspiration of
Arnold, as he thrilled his men ; when he hurled them
against the enemy he astonished the English and
Germans with the deadly fire of his rifles. Nothing
could exceed the bravery of Arnold on this day ; he
seemed the very genius of war, infuriated by the con-
flict and maddened by Gates' refusal to send rein-
forcements, which he repeatedly called for, and
knowing he was meeting the brunt of the battle, he
seemed inspired with the fury of a demon. Riding
in front of the line, his eyes flashing, pointing with
his sword to the advancing foe, with a voice that
rung clear as a trumpet and electrified the line he
called upon the men to follow him to the charge, and
then dashing forward, closely followed by his troops,
he hurled them like a tornado on the British line and
swept it away. There seemed to shoot out from him

Hon. William Wirfs Visit. 153

headlong confusion, the groans of the dying, the cry
for quarter, ghastly and bleeding wounds, the severed
limbs, men and horses mingled on the plain in one
wide scene of indiscriminate blood and carnage ! Oh,
what an uproar then ! How still and quiet now ! !
Where are they all ! " What is that your plow is
turning up?" "Only a skeleton." "What, yet to
this day?" "Even yet our plows are constantly
striking against cannon balls or dead men's bones, or
turning up grape-shot or bullets." " Then, I guess
the people were not idle on that day?" "You may
depend, friend, they were busy."* " I believe it, but

a magnetic flame that electrified his men and made
heroes of all within his influence.

" Arnold was not only the hero of the field, but he
had won the admiration of the whole army. There
was not a man, officer or private who participated in
the battle, or who witnessed the conflict who did not
believe that if Gates had sent reinforcements, as
Arnold again and again begged him to do, he would
have utterly routed the whole British army. So
general was this belief, and so damaging to Gates,
that as an excuse to save himself from reproaches
coming from every side he gave out as the reason
that the store of powder and ball in the camp was
exhausted, and that the supplies of ammunition from
Albany had not arrived. No one could dispute this,
yet no one believed it."

* Had old "Ezra" lived at the present time, his

reply doubtless would have been in the slang of our

day : " You may bet, boss, they were busy." I call

attention to this particularly to show how greatly our

20

154 Hon. William Wirfs Visit.

I have a friend in Virginia who would be glad to have
some of the bullets that were fired in those great bat-
tles— battles that gave the first decided turn to the
American Revolution." " To be sure, there is a ball
which has been rolling about the yard for some time ;
you shall have it, and the bullets, too ; and you, John,
go up into the loft and bring down that skull."
" Thank you," said I. " Excuse me from the skull -
it will not be convenient to carry it — but the ball
and the bullets I will gladly take," and so I did.

We went to several other houses which have all
been built since, for it was then entirely wood, except
" Freeman's farm," which you will see mentioned in
the books, and at all these houses bullets and bones
were offered — even the little children handling and
offering the human bones with as total an absence
from all emotion as if they were chickens' bones or
dry sticks.* Having examined the battle grounds of

colloquial language has deteriorated within the last fifty
years. Notice, also, the respectful attitude all through,
of the guide — so different from the guides of the
present day on the battlefields of the late Civil War.

* Even at the present day (1895) the tourist ex-
periences the same incidents. In 1877 Judge Chs. S.
Lester, C. C. Lester, Willard Lester, the late Joseph
G. Cook and myself, while on a visit to the battle
grounds, were badgered by little children offering
such relics for sale. Nor were these, like those relics
of the battle of Waterloo, bogus — they were genuine
relics. In fact, Judge Lester and our companions on
this visit, picked up some bones and cannon balls and
also a gilt button of the 2ist Highlanders — the lat-

Hon. William Wirt's Visit. 155

both days and walked, listened to my guide, and
sighed till my heart was full and heavy, I returned to

ter on the site of the famous defense of the mound
attacked by Dearborn, Poor and Cilley. That this
was done at this late day is not, however, surprising,
as we knew that near the spot where Eraser was
wounded, some forty soldiers, after being stripped of
their clothing by the women of the camp, were buried
in one trench, a mere layer of earth being cast upon
them. See, also, Neilson's account in appendix. In
this connection we quote the following :

" Revolutionary Relics. — We were last week shown
about 200 canister shot and bullets, a broken bayonet
and a silver shoe buckle which were plowed up du-
ring the present season on the Saratoga battle ground
at Bemis' Heights. Many of the bullets were much
battered and some of them split, occasioned doubt-
less by their having come in contact with a harder
substance after their discharge ; the bayonet bore
evident marks of having been violently broken off,
probably during the conflict, and the buckle unques-
tionably belonged to an officer, it being the fashion
of that day, and weighing about five-eighths of an
ounce. Several of the bullets, the bayonet and buckle
have been left at the reading-rooms for inspection.
The annual resort to this consecrated spot having
much increased of late years, we are told that prep-
arations are now going forward for the erection of a
good public house for the convenience of visitants.
Such an establishment has been much needed, and
we have no doubt will obtain a handsome support."
— From an old Saratoga county paper of Aug. 5, 1834.

" An Interesting Relic. — Mr. Henry A. Near, of
Bemis' Heights, while sowing wheat a few days ago

156 Hon. William Wirfs Visit.

my quarters * and slept very little, to my honor, with-
out dreaming, for I was too much fatigued to sleep
fancifully.

on his farm near the old battle ground, picked up a
large lead bullet which, besides bearing the marks of
more than one hundred years of time, is scarred with
thirteen clearly-cut stars, doubtless made by some
hero of the Revolutionary war, and suggested by the
flag which, bearing the stars and stripes, was first un-
furled there. It is an interesting relic. — Saratoga
Sun, September 25, 1879.

In 1823 Ebenezer Leggett, a son of Isaac, came
from Westchester county to the old Freeman farm,
and on his first plowing he not only turned up a num-
ber of skeletons, rifle and cannon balls, but also the
well-preserved skeleton of an officer, a part of his red
uniform being entire, the color even being unchanged.
When, in 1846, he repaired an old barn on the prem-
ises, occupying the site of Balcarras' redoubt, he
found some money in gold and silver to the amount
of $90, apparently carried in belts. The neighbors,
however, insisted that the sum thus found was much
larger. In this connection see note ante about Cong-
don's gold, found on nearly the same place by a la-
borer in the employ of Leggett.

* The house thus indicated was undoubtedly the
" old Walker homestead " built by Walker, who was
in the battles, and which is situated some few rods
north of the basswood tree under which Fraser was
shot. It is still (1895) standing and owned by Joseph
Rogers, and has been since the beginning of the
present century the place where all visitors stop over
night on their visits to the battle grounds. In this
house is still to be seen the old register book where

Hon. William Wirfs Visit. 157

The next morning I took another ride with old
Ezra to see the American encampment, and above

one can yet recognize the signatures of John Quincy
Adams, Calhoun, Clay, Webster, Silliman, Dwight,
Wirt, and others nearly equally distinguished, show-
ing that amidst all the turmoil incident to political
life they had still a corner left in their hearts for their
country's dead.

In this connection, the following letter from Daniel
Webster, penned immediately after his visit to the
battle grounds, is of interest ; nor can the observant
reader fail to notice in it the same spirit which actu-
ated Dr. Johnson in the account of " His visit to the
Hebrides." " Far from me and my friends be such
frigid philosophy, etc."

WEBSTER'S LETTER.

"BOSTON, Oct. II, '28.

" MY DEAR FRIEND. — I thank you for your letter
of Sept. 20, detailing the incidents of your tour. It
has enabled me to go pretty accurately over your
track, and I have followed you, by the means of it,
repeatedly from Boston, 'round by the west and home
to Bangor. I well understand how you should feel
excited by visiting such places as Kingsbridge, White
Plains, Bemis Heights. I never knew a man yet, nor
a woman either, with a sound head and a good heart,
that was not more or less under the power which those
local associations exercise. It is true that place in
these things is originally accidental ; battles might
have been fought elsewhere, as well as at Saratoga or
Bennington ; nevertheless here they were fought,
and nature does not allow us to pass over the scene
of such events with indifference, unless we have a

158 Hon. William Wirt's Visit.

all, Gates' headquarters. The house is still standing.
It is a small, red, hip-roofed, one-storied old house
that has quite a revolutionary look.* " And here," the

good share of bluntness and stupidity, or unless the
scenes themselves have become familiar by frequent
visits to them. For my part I love them all, and all
such as they. An old drum hangs up in the Senate
chamber of Massachusetts, taken from the Hessians
at Bennington, and I do not think I ever went into
the room without turning to look at it. And that
reminds me to say that I have a pair of silver sleeve
buttons, the material of which my father picked up
on and brought away from that same field of Ben-
nington. If I thought either of my boys would not
value them fifty years hence, if he should live so long,
I believe I would begin to flog him now.
*******

" But I must stop or I shall write a sermon. Adieu.
I have not written so tediously long a letter in a
twelvemonth.

" Give every good wish of my heart to your wife,
and, as we Yorkers say, 'the same to yourself.'
" Yours very truly,

" DANL. WEBSTER."

h This house, known before the battles as well as
up to the present time, as the " old Neilson house,"
is still (1895) standing in a very fair state of preser-
vation. As stated in the text, it was the headquar-
ters of Gates during both battles, a tablet — as men-
tioned in the appendix — standing in the yard now,
tells its history. The builder of the house, Neilson,
was an old Colonial Revolutionary guide. See his
sons anecdotes in the appendix to this volume.

Hon. William Wirfs Visit. 159

old man said, " the general remained during both of the
battles," which were fought at least a mile from this
house, and certainly out of sight. "This," the old
guide said, " he was told was right, as it was the
general's business to be at one place always to receive
information and give ideas." Yet the old fellow's
look had a glimpse of passing cunning, as much as
to say, " A bad excuse is better than none." * I could
not help thinking, myself, that it was not exactly in
the style of Napoleon.

But what do you think of these armies resting
here in the opposite encampments — their sentinels
within hail of each other for seven days without
striking a blow, and at last the first action (the iQth
Sept.) being brought on by accident ! Gates had a
good motive for the delay — for his army was con-
tinually gathering strength ; but that Burgoyne, in
the spirit of proud and contemptuous invasion — with
such an army and so appointed — should have sat
down so quietly and so foolishly, while his enemies
were hourly increasing in strength, satisfies me that
he was no Bonaparte. But the Bonaparte style of
daring was not the order of that day. But enough
of judging men a posteriore. At that time and in
their place we might have done the same or worse.

* The old guide's ideas of the personal poltroonery
of Gates are fully corroborated by his contempo-
raries. Gates was really an arrant coward. See my
" Burgoynes Campaign" and "Ballads" where this
subject is treated in full.

160 Hon. William Wirfs Visit.

Poor Gates ! this was his first and last field of glory !
What a triumphant opening of his military career in
America ! What a reverse was he doomed to expe-
rience in one short year ! And for poor Burgoyne,
it was his " last and dying speech as a soldier." So
that both to victor and to vanquished, it was the pre-
lude only to misfortune. Such is the passing glory
of this world !

Now, as to Burgoyne ! Pray, my dear brother, did
you ever read the sentimental comedy of " The
Heiress," or " The Maid of the Oaks," or did you
ever hear the tender and elegant songs of " Anna's
Urn," or "For Tenderness Found?" These were
written by Burgoyne ; and although our printers, our
Revolutionary officers in their letters, and our song in-
diters of that day, used to charge him with bombast, I
do think that he was one of the most classical and
elegant writers which the English nation has pro-
duced.* If Burgoyne had been born to the wealth
of Byron he would have pitched the poetic bar be-

* The writer's estimate of Burgoyne's literary merit
is entirely correct. "The Heiress" was welcomed
on its first appearance by crowded audiences with
the applause it so well merited. Indeed, the sale of
ten editions in one year bore ample testimony to its
merits as a chaste, a spirited and polished composi-
tion. For an account, also, under which the song
" Anna's Urn" was written, as well as for a full life
of Burgoyne, see my '•'Ballads of Burgoyne s Cam-
paign."

Hon. William Wirfs Visit. 161

yond him by many a league. War was not his proper
element. While upon the fields of his battles and
final surrender, and remembering the beautiful and
pathetic effusions of genius to which I have alluded,
I could not help pitying such a man, whose mistake
of his own character had put him at the head of a
band of merciless, tomahawking, scalping savages,
and " damned Hessians, Hanovarians, Auspachers,
Waldenchers and Wolfenbiittles." From these fields
my mind followed these British prisoners to their
barracks near Charlottesville [Va.], and then came
the recollections of your and Bullock's anecdotes of
that place, the temporary theatre and the acting of
plays by the British officers.*

This is a pretty long letter, and it is time to stop.
* * #

The "relics will be addressed to the care of John
Gamble. They have no value, except from the asso-
ciated sentiments you will give them ; and, perhaps,
the associated image of

Your friend,

WILLIAM WIRT."

* For an account of these plays, etc., see my
" Revolutionary Letters," Joel Munsell & Sons,
Albany, N. Y., 1893.

21

VISIT OF P. STANSBURY* TO THE BATTLE AND
SURRENDER GROUNDS IN SEPT., 1821.

Continuing on from Waterford with the high
grounds at a distance on my left and the Hudson
rolling on my right, I came in the evening to the
scattered village of Stillwater, the well-known scene
of the most important events of the Revolutionary
war. Burgoyne's retreat from this place was proba-
bly the preservation of the States of New England.
He had been sent with a powerful army, stores, ar-
tillery, and the various engines of war necessary for
a momentous expedition from St. Johns, in Lower
Canada, under a design of cutting off every com-
munication of the Southern with the Eastern States,
which were considered as the soul of the Revolution
in America. The British general, Sir Henry Clin-
ton, was to meet him at Albany from New York and
join in reducing the strongest posts in these quarters.

* Stansbury, a native of New York city, was a per-
son who obtained some celebrity at the time by
making a pedestrian tour of over 2,000 miles through
New York, New England and the Canadas. His
account of his travels is marked by considerable
acuteness of observation.

Stansburys Letter. 163

He advanced and swept all before him. Crown
Point,* Ticonderoga, Mount Defiance.f Mount

* Crown Point at this time was not an important
fortress, so far, at least, as regards its strength.
Rivingtoris Gazette for May 6, 1773, has this item:
u Accidental fire from a chimney in a building at
Crown Point set fire to other buildings and the maga-
zine in April. The magazine blew up by the explo-
sion of 100 pounds of powder, resulting in all the
fortifications and other buildings being destroyed."

f This " Mt. Defiance," or as it was also called,
" Sugar Loaf Hill," was really the key to the situa-
tion, whichever army might occupy it. As early as
J uly, 1 758, Capt. Stark had brought the fact of its com-
manding attitude to the notice of Lord Howe (see
Memoir of Caleb Stark, pg. 24). Howe, on that
occasion, had been taken by Stark to its summit -
some 800 feet in height — overlooking and com-
manding the works of Ticonderoga. Howe even
perceived at that time the advantage which a few
pieces of artillery placed there in battery would afford
a besieging army on the garrison. But Gen.
Abercrombie, supposing his force of sufficient
strength, brought no artillery with his army. Again,
in 1776, Col. John Trumbull, when adjutant for the
northern department, 'had called the attention of the
American general to this same thing. When he
made this suggestion he was laughed at by his mess ;
but he soon proved the accuracy of his own vision by
throwing a cannon shot to the summit, and subse-
quently clambered up to the top, dragging a cannon
after him, accompanied by Cols. Stevens, Wayne and
Arnold. Indeed, it was a criminal neglect on the
part of the Americans that the oversight was not at

164 Stansburys Letter.

Independence,* Fort George, Fort Edward — all
were compelled to yield to his progress, and victory
hovered over his exulting army until he approached
Saratoga, within a few miles of Stillwater.

The river winds in its course, and after meandering
through the flatlands of the valley here bends and
runs within sixty yards of the foot of some high hills
or embankments which are now called Bemis's
Heights. With a sensation of awe I slowly paced
the road to the spot where our forefathers fought
and conquered. The names of the victorious heroes
crowded upon my recollection like the glittering stars
in the sky, which then enabled me to survey the am-
biguous outline of the landscape. There is an Innf

once corrected by the construction of a work upon
that point, which would have commanded the whole
post. It was a neglect, however, which was soon to
cost them dear, for owing to this neglect, St. Clair
was obliged to evacuate Ticonderoga. There is still
(1894) to be seen on top of Mt. Defiance a large flat
rock with the holes in it by which Burgoyne's cannon
were made fast.

* Mt. Independence was a smaller hill east of Mt.
Defiance on the Vermont side, and separated from it
by the outlet of Lake George. This hill was forti-
fied by Gen. Stark in 1776, by order of Gen. Gates,
then commanding at Ticonderoga. In clearing the
hill to prepare for erecting the works the troops killed
an immense number of rattlesnakes.

fThe " Bemis Tavern." For an account of the
landlord, Bemis, see appendix.

Stansburys Letter. 165

under the heights where, with the remembrance of
the deeds which transpired on these grounds, I con-
tented myself to repose.

BATTLE OF BEMIS'S HEIGHTS.

The next morning the son of the innkeeper, who
was himself one of our old Revolutionary warriors
and had stood somewhat perspicuous upon this mem-
orable occasion, volunteered his services as my guide
to the fields of battle.

The young man had acquired a perfect knowledge
of every part of the ground and every circumstance
of the engagements, not only from the descriptions
of his father and other venerable soldiers, but also
from an attentive perusal of the histories of the war.

We ascended the hill. Few vestiges are to be
seen ; the plough has strove with insiduous zeal to
destroy even these few remaining evidences of Revo-
lutionary heroism. Each succeeding year the agri-
culturist turns afresh the sod of the weather-beaten
breastworks, and as he sweats and toils, to the great
anguish of the antiquarian, to level alike mounds and
ditches, he exhibits the peaceful efforts of that liberty
and wide independence which these have procured,
over whose graves he tramples.

When Gen. Burgoyne advanced to this place, after
crossing the Hudson at Saratoga by a bridge of boats,
he found, instead of a flying and dispirited army, a
large and resolute army to stop his farther progress.
Gen. Burgoyne had boasted before the British House

1 66 Stansburys Letter.

of Commons that with 4,000 men, the colonies could be
reduced into subjection. More than twice that num-
ber were now enlisted under his banners — resolute
and brave veteran soldiers, who were already begin-
ning to suffer all the distress and fatigue attendant
upon an embarrassed army. Harrassed by the
American scouts, shortened in the usual allowance
of provisions and enclosed in a narrow valley with
an impassable river on one side, hills and thick for-
ests on the other, the American army under Gen.
Gates facing them in front, and a road so broken in
their rear as to allow little hopes of an easy return-
ing march ; this mighty host, which came thundering
from the north with a most formidable train of heavy
brass artillery, stores and equipments, now shrunk
from an army of untutored militia.

Above the heights are level plains, which at that
time were partly cleared and called " Freeman's
Farm."' Here the conflicting armies met. They

* In connection with "Freeman's Farm " the fol-
lowing anecdote is not without interest. A Mr.
Michael Condon, who died in the early part of 1891,
was once a day laborer on the farm now known as
" Freeman's Farm." He had been set to work dig-
ging or otherwise on the farm ; and when at noon
the owner of the farm came along he found a hole
dug in the ground in which there were yet one or
two gold pieces scattered around. These, as the
owner of the farm, he claimed and took. A year
afterward Mr. Condon bought and paid for a very ex-
pensive farm, which is known to this day as the

Stansburys Letter. 167

fought from three in the afternoon (Sept. 19, 1777)
until day closed upon the bloody scene and obliged
the combatants to separate.

Though the British claimed the victory, no ad-
vantages resulted to them from this engagement.
Both armies began to throw up entrenchments and
fortify their camps in the strongest possible manner.*

" Battle Farm," and while no one could say positively
that it was bought with these gold pieces, yet no one
doubted the fact. See note ante.

* Burgoyne's camp, however, was in a continual
state of alarm from this time until the final battle of
the 7th of October. One incident among many of a
similar character may be mentioned. During all of
this time his (Burgoyne's) officers and soldiers were
constantly dressed and ready for action. One night
twenty young farmers, residing near his camp, re-
solved to capture his advance picket guard. Armed
with fowling-pieces they marched silently through the
woods until they were within a few yards of the
picket. They then rushed from the brushes, the
captain blowing an old horse trumpet, and the men
yelling. There was no time for the sentinels to hail.
" Ground your arms or you are all dead men," cried
the patriot captain. Thinking that a large force had
fallen upon them, the picket obeyed. As a result of
this daring the young farmers, with all the parade of
regulars, marched before them to the American camp
over thirty British soldiers. Innumerable instances
are given by contemporary writers of the intensity
and bitterness of the feelings of the Whigs against
the Tories at this time, one of which may be here
mentioned in connection with the battle of Benning-

1 68 Stansburys Letter.

The field of battle extends one mile back from the
road by the river. The entrenchments of the two
camps can to this day be traced, almost razed in some
places, and in others overgrown with bushes and tall
forest trees. The line of Burgoyne's camp, which
lay north of the Americans, is visible and daily wash-
ing away and exposing rotten logs, which, in part,
composed the breastworks. Upon a range of knolls
square redoubts are very perceptible, from which the
Americans commanded the passage of the road and
river ; another wide redoubt is turned into a buck-
wheat field, with its venerable moats and parapets
forming the enclosure. About a half a mile west
from these redoubts stand the farm-house and
barns — which, after the battle of the iQth, were oc-
cupied as hospitals. The farm-house is large, painted
red, untenanted and ready to fall. It was the head-
quarters of Gen. Gates, who, when the engagement
was over, generally removed into a tent and gave up
his rooms to the wounded soldiers.

ton. In reading this the reader will doubtless recall
the fray of the two brothers Butler in the Wyoming
massacre (see my father's History of Wyoming).
The anecdote to which we here particularly call at-
tention is as follows : An old gentleman in speaking,
at the age of 90, about these occurrences, says : " On
my way back I got the belt of a Hessian whose sword
I had taken in the pursuit. One Tory with his left
eye shot out was led by me, mounted on a horse,
who had also lost his left eye. It seems cruel now
— it did not then."

Stansburys Letter. 169

My conductor, seating himself upon an elevated
rail-fence, where I also mounted, and, taking content-
edly an apple from the bough of a luxuriant tree
which had fixed its roots upon the rounded top of one
of the ancient ramparts, pointed to different points
of the plain. " There," said he " is an old barn still
standing, which stood within the British line of en-
campment, and there is the spot where Col. Cilley
straddled a twelve-pounder, which had been taken
twice from the enemy. Here stood the tents of the
American army ; the soldiers were idly sitting or re-
posing in them, when an officer was seen riding over
the plain ; the generals met him and immediately
all were in arms, forming into companies or march-
ing in order of battle. Yonder a troop of wounded
dragoons were coming from the engagement toward
the hospital ; death sat upon their countenances, blood
ran from their bodies, and as the mournful train
slowly advanced some one of them, at every short
distance, fell from his horse and expired on the ground."

The period between the iQth of September and
the second engagement on the 7th of October was
full of painful anxiety on the part of the British. Not
a day passed without the death of some soldier or
officer, shot by the American scouts and marksmen.*

* " Burgoyne's army was as good as cut off from
its outposts, while in consequence of its proximity to
the American camp, the soldiers had but little rest.
The nights also were rendered hideous by the howls
of large packs of wolves, that were attracted by the
22

1 70 Stansburys Letter.

And at this moment the Indians, when their assist-
ance was most needed, deserted from the cause un-
der which they had enlisted. Their defection was
occasioned by the disappointment of their hopes of
plunder and by the notice which Gen. Burgoyne was
in honor obliged to take of the cruel massacre of
Miss McCrea.*

On the 7th of October the royal army was ob-
served advancing, prepared for action. Their design
was to force a passage through the American lines ;
or, if they failed, to dislodge them from their en-
trenchments, and retreat by way of Lake George.
The American troops were in readiness to repulse
the attack, and the engagement soon became gene-
ral. A tremendous fire ensued. The thunder of the
British cannon was dreadful. After a contest of the
most sanguinary kind, which lasted a great part of
the afternoon, the victory was at last decided in favor
of the American army, and the enemy, leaving many
of their officers highest in command wounded or

partially-buried bodies of those slain in the action of
the iQth. On the ist of October a few English sol-
diers, who were digging potatoes in a field a short
distance in the rear of headquarters, within the camp,
were surprised by the enemy, who suddenly rushed
from the woods and carried off the men in the very
faces of their comrades."- -Stones Burgoyne s Cam-
paign.

* For a true account of the murder of Miss McCrea
see my Burgoyne Ballads.

Stansburys Letter. 171

slain, upon the field and several pieces of their brass
artillery, fled precipitately into their lines. The
Americans pursued and commenced a ferocious as-
sault upon their camp, which was in part carried when
night once more closed upon the bloody scene.

This defeat was signal. Gen. Burgoyne, in the
darkness of the night, after leaving fires kindled and
some tents standing, led back his weak, dispirited
army on the road they had before travelled as far as
Saratoga, where he remained until the articles of sur-
render were signed on the i7th of October, 1777.
The British, who not long before had advanced in
such overwhelming numbers and with such a formid-
able array of strength and equipments, were now con
ducted mournful captives between two files of vic-
torious troops into the very city of Albany, in which
they had thought with the greater \sic\ certainty of
spending a happy winter.*

A trench and rampart overgrown with bushes and
crowned with a rail fence runs from the foot of
Bemis's Heights across the meadow to the bank of
the Hudson river. It formed a part of the American
line of entrenchments. Where it is terminated at
the edge of the river a sentinel was walking late in
the night after the battle of the 7th, when a boat
appeared moving down the stream, which he hailed.
The boat put ashore under a flag of truce and a

* In corroboration of this, see ante an anecdote
about Fraser.

1 72 Stansburys Letter,

beautiful lady, with her attendants, ascended the
bank. This was Lady Harriet Acland. Her hus-
band was wounded and a prisoner in the American
camp. With a heroism seldom to be met with she
had thus ventured, on a cold stormy night, in the
midst of her enemies, without knowing whose hands
she might fall into in order to quiet her dreadful ap-
prehensions respecting the fate of her husband and
to attend upon him until he should be recovered of
his wounds. Major Dearborn,* who commanded the
guards, conducted her into a cabin of his own, where
an apartment was cleared, a fire kindled and supper
prepared. She remained until the morning and was
then escorted with the honors due to her rank and
condition into the American camp.f

* For a correct sketch of Dearborn, see " Apple-
ton's Biographical Encyclopaedia;" also Gen. James
Grant Wilson's letter in " The Dearborns," Chicago,
Fergus Printing Co., 1884; Coffin's " Life of Dear-
born." In 1794 Louis Philippe (afterward king of
France) and Talleyrand visited Gen. Dearborn at
Pittston, Me., and remained several days. Fort
Dearborn (now Chicago, 111.), was named after him.
The original M SS. " J ournal of Gen. Dearborn," never
printed, is in the Boston library. Through the kind-
ness of the librarian I have obtained a copy of it.

f A full life of Lady Acland will be found in my
"Burgoyne Ballads." Indeed, the entire subject of
the Burgoyne campaign is so vast, that in order not
to duplicate my statements I only give references to
where such and such topics are treated.

Stansbury's Letter. 1 73

The house which the British army made their hos-
pital is about three miles from the town where I had
stopped, and is colloquially termed in the neighbor-
hood the house where Fraser died. It is now called
Smith's tavern.* There is a wide meadow between
it and the high grounds under which it formerly stood.
It has since been removed half a mile to the bank of
the river. Its form is antique, the rooms are large
and not in the least ruinous. The Baroness de
Riedesel, with her three infant children, who had ac-
companied her husband, Major-General Riedesel,
commander of the German troops from Canada,
through all the horrors of war, here occupied a room,
whilst the adjoining apartments were filled with the
wounded and the dying. In the afternoon of the
second battle she expected the generals to dine with
her at four o'clock, when, instead of the guests, Gen.
Fraser was brought in carried on a litter mortally
wounded. The table was instantly removed. By
some, indeed, it is related that the dishes and every
article on the table were swept upon the floor and
Gen. Fraser was laid upon it instead of a bed. This
brave and gallant soldier died the next day, and, ac-
cording to his request, his corpse was borne without
parade to the top of the hill behind the house, where
a redoubt had been built and is still visible. The

* Also called at the time of the battle " the Taylor
house." For a picture of it see my " Letters of
Madame Riedesel.'

1 74 Stansburys Letter.

procession, accompanied by Gen. Burgoyne and the
principal officers, slowly ascended the hill in sight of
both armies and under a continual fire from the
Americans. The funeral service was performed in
the usual manner, but the solemnity of interment
was rendered strikingly awful by the cannon balls
which now and then covered the mournful train with
clouds of dust* His remains are removed to Eng-
land, f The hill is known by its standing directly
back of the house and having the trees and bushes
cleared away from its sides.

The road leading to the village of Saratoga [now
Schuylerville, N. Y.] is uneven and recedes from the
river, which at intervals may be seen rolling its di-
minished current among the trees and meadows, near
the Fishkill, a creek [having its source in Saratoga
lake] falling into the Hudson. The ruins of an old
church, celebrated in the bloody scenes of the Revo-
lution, were lying at the roadside, having been very
lately pulled down on account of its decayed condi-
tion. The unfinished bed of the Northern canal,

* As soon, however, as the Americans discovered
that it was a burial and not a new military manoeuvre,
to take possession of a strategic point, the firing was
immediately discontinued, and yet English historians,
with true British venom, continue to repeat this
yarn. For a sketch of Gen. Eraser see my " Bur-
goyne Ballads."

f An error. For the origin of this report of the
removal of Fraser's remains see my " Burgoyne's
Campaign," Appendix.

Stansburys Letter. 175

which is to connect Lake Champlain with the Hud-
son, runs sometimes on one side and sometimes on
the other side of the road. On the left the high
bank of the creek extends, upon which Gen. Gates,
with the main body of the American army, was posted
after pursuing to this place the retreating enemy. A
descendant of Gen. Schuyler, who first commanded
against Burgoyne, has a seat situated upon a point
formed by the junction of the two streams and ad-
jacent a large establishment of mills.*

Saratoga consists of a few scattered houses. The
situation, however, is pleasant, with the Hudson be-
low, divided by two romantic islands, the Battenkill f

* For a more particular account of these mills see
Chastellux's letter.

f The Battenkill, one of the tributaries of the
Hudson river, flows rapidly from the Green moun-
tains of Vermont, and after a picturesque fall enters
that river some half a mile above the village of
Schuylerville, N. Y. The name " Battenkill " is a
remarkable example of a name entirely lost by con-
traction. Its origin was as follows : A Dutchman
named Bartholomew Van Hogeboom was the first
settler at the mouth of this creek and it was named
Bartholomew's Kill. He was usually called "Bart"
or " Bat," and the creek was called " Bat's Kill." It
now appears on our maps and in gazetteers Batten-
kill, giving scarcely a hint of its origin. For the
benefit of fishermen, of which guild I am one, I here
append a clipping from a Washington county paper.
The Cambridge Post, of Aug. 13, 1887, says: "Fish-
ermen had only fair luck the first of May. At an

1 76 Stansburys Letter.

pouring its waters from the east and the high moun-
tains of Vermont rising in sight, all which is en-
hanced by the recollection of the glory which the
American arms there acquired. The royal army oc-
cupied the heights, where they were completely sur-
rounded by the American battalions and compelled
(Oct. 1 7) to surrender prisoners of war.

The American soldiers lined the opposite bank of
the river and poured continual volleys into the British
encampment. A large farm-house stands upon a hill
not far from the village, against which they kept up
a terrible cannonade under the mistaken idea that in
it all the generals were assembled. But it contained
only wounded soldiers and the officers' wives, who
had taken shelter from their destructive fire. The

early hour the brooks were lined. The Battenkill
was so high that it was impossible to do anything in
it, and resort was had to the smaller brooks. The
fish were coy and did not bite well, and the total
number taken was much smaller than last year. This
was partly compensated for, however, by the size of
some that were taken. H. M. Wells was 'high hook.'
He captured a beauty at the old Wilcox bridge, south
of this village, 20^ inches long, and weighing two
pounds and thirteen ounces. James S. Smart caught
a pound and one-half trout in Battenkill, and John
Rice one of the same weight in the furnace brook.
George L. Williams captured a pound fish, and Irv-
ing Willard displayed a fine mess, caught, it is said,
in a fly manner with a silver hackle. The snow water
is running yet, and it will be some days before the
fishing will be prime."

Stansburys Letter. 177

Baroness Riedesel, with her infant children, being in
the house, was obliged to seek refuge in the cellar,
where she remained during a whole night, her chil-
dren sleeping on the cold earth with their heads on
her lap.

This house was shown to me ; it is called " Bushee's
House," and remains still in a very good condition.
The hill upon which it stands accords exactly with
that engraved on the map in Smith's " History of the
American War." The present tenants received me
politely and pointed out the several rooms, rendered
famous for the remarkable occurrences which trans-
pired between these walls.* In one room an unfor-

* Now (1895) called the "Marshall House." The
historical character of this house, situated about a
quarter of a mile north of the village of Schuyler-
ville, makes it an object of peculiar interest to all
visitors, in connection with the ground occupied by
the British forces previous to the surrender of Gene-
ral Burgoyne. After the English army had retreated
from Freeman's farm and had crossed the Fishkill,
it was during the whole period of the British en-
campment until the day of surrender the refuge
of that most remarkable and intelligent German
woman, Madame Frederika Riedesel, the wife of
Major-General Riedesel. The severe and trying
ordeal through which she patiently and heroically
passed in this house, as related by her in so graphic
a manner in her letters during the environment of
the royal army by the Continental forces, is of such
an impressive nature as to make the place and the
incidents pertaining to it one of the most notable
23

1 78 Stansburys Letter.

tunate soldier was lying on the table, for the purpose
of having his leg amputated, when a cannon ball

in history. At the time of the Revolutionary war
this property was owned by a family of Lansings,
who, on the approach of the Indians attached to
Burgoyne's army, fled and left it unprotected. It
seems, however, from the narrative of Madame
Riedesel, that there was a woman — whether a do-
mestic or a member of the owner's family is not quite
clear — who rendered her various important services
while she and her children were sheltered in the cel-
lar, and whom, when they left the house, they gave
a generous recompense. As described in a deed
from Peter Lansing to Samuel Bushe, dated April 30,
1803, the land on which the house is situated was
known as "lot number one of the loth allotment in
the general division of Kayaderosseras patent,"
bounded on the south by the north line of the Sara-
toga patent, containing about forty acres. In a con-
veyance of the same by Samuel Bushe to Abraham
Marshall, his father-in-law, dated December 7, 1817,
the property is described as lying west of the road
leading from Bacon Hill, in the town of Northum-
berland, to Joseph Welsh, in the town of Saratoga.
It states that Samuel Bushe reserved one-half of the
dwelling-house," viz.: the north-half thereof, from
the center of the hall, and the one-half of the kitchen
attached to said dwelling-house, and the free use
thereof until another kitchen be built upon the said
premises. From the family register in an old King
James Bible, printed in Edinburgh by Mark and
Charles Kerr, MDCCLXXXIX, in the possession
(1894) of the widow of William B. Marshall, it is
learned that Abraham Marshall was born on the

Stansburys Letter. 179

passed through the house and carried away his other
leg. His attendants had absconded to the cellar and

1 5th of February, 1730, and had a son by his wife
Susannah, named Samuel, who was born April 9,
1771. The latter was the father of Wm. B. Mar-
shall, born February, 1823, and who married Jane
M. Griswold, of Milton, Saratoga county, N. Y., May
i, 1844, the present (1894) owner of the house —
who is one of the most patriotic ladies of the day,
and who takes great pride in her possession.

Although the old house was remodeled about a
decade ago, the greater part of it still remains as it
was originally built. The flooring of yellow pine
plank, fifteen inches wide, and held in place by
wrought iron nails, is still to be seen, upon which the
blood stains of the wounded soldier who was struck
by a cannon ball are visible. On the loth of Oc-
tober, a cannon ball shot from Col. Fellow's field-
piece on the hill a little north of the Battenkill on
the left bank of the river, struck the north-east cor-
ner of the house, and entering the hall, tore away a
part of the baseboard, and passing across the room,
perforated the partition made of two-inch plank, set
edge to edge, which separated the north room from
the center hall. The partition planks are still to be
seen in the cellar.

The original front door in two parts, upper and
lower, the old lock and key, window frames, several
windows, the ballustrade of the stairway to the upper
chambers, and wrought iron door catch are still pre-
served and shown to visitors. Among the relics and
heirlooms in the family is a gold coin with the date
1776, and the inscription, Georgius III, Dei Gratia,
cannon balls, grape, a piece of an eight-inch shell,

180 Stansburys Letter.

other places of security, and when they returned
they found the miserable man in a corner where he
had crept scarcely exhibiting any signs of life.* As

several old and peculiar shaped axes dug up in the
yard, and, likely, belonging to the British army, and
other mementoes are to be seen. The most interest-
ing part of the house is the old cellar so accurately de-
scribed by Madame Riedesel. Here is to be seen
the very apartment which she and her children occu-
pied during the cannonading of the house, and also the
former entrance to the cellar to which she refers, the
heavy ten-inch square beams and the strong stone
foundation. The house has a very commanding view
of the river and surrounding country. It is about
250 feet west of the road to Fort Miller, and a short
distance from the Hudson river, toward which it
fronts.

Dr. N. C. Harris, of Schuylerville, with praise-
worthy zeal, erected, June 7, 1879, m tne ^ront yard
of the house facing and in plain sight of the road,
an iron post with thirteen-inch base, twelve feet high,
with a plate inscribed upon it : " House occupied by
Madame Riedesel and the wounded officers of Gen.
Burgoyne's army, October loth, 1777."

* For a detailed account of this sad episode, the
reader is referred to my translation of Mrs. Gen.
Riedesel's letters.

This incident recalls a similar one which occurred
in the naval battle during our late civil war, between
the Kearsage and the Alabama, igth of June, 1864.
During that action, as Asst. Surgeon Llewellyn, of
the Alabama, was waiting upon the wounded in the
ward-room, his table and a patient lying upon it were
swept away from him by an eleven-inch shell which

Stansburys Letter. 1 8 1

no person dared to fetch water from the river, it soon
became extremely scarce, until a soldier's wife boldly
ventured to the shore, at whom the Americans, out
of respect [and out of chivalric courtesy for which
they are so distinguished] did not fire. For this dis-
interestedness she was afterward handsomely re-
warded. Strange stories are told about spots of
blood which no washings could ever erase from the
floor, but which, it appears, are at last hidden from
sight by several coverings of paint.

At Saratoga, few marks of the encampments are
discernable. My host, toward evening, conducted
me to a large field, divided by a narrow piece of
woods, over which a few risings of earth and scarcely
perceptible excavations, gave evidence of the para-
pets and moats which had been there and which the
cultivators of the ground were endeavoring to reduce
all to the same level, whilst an insignificant French
redoubt (Fort Hardy), situated on a fertile meadow
near the river, has been suffered to remain near a
century untouched by the plow and defended by
thick bushes from the attacks of nature.*

opened in the side of the ship an aperture that fast
filled the vessel with water. See Century Magazine
for April, 1886.

* For a reference to Ft. Hardy see note in advance.

GENERAL HOYT'S VISIT TO THE BATTLE
GROUND IN 1825.*

The following is from a tour of the late Gen.

o

Hoyt, of Deerfield, Massachusetts, made to the battle
ground forty-eight years after the surrender of Bur-
goyne :

From Troy we proceeded up the Hudson in an
extra stage, through Waterford, Mechanicville and
Stillwater village to Ketchum's tavern at Bemis'
Heights, the position taken up by Gen. Gates' army
September 12, 1777, where we found good accommo-
dations. At this place there are now several houses,
and among others the handsome residence of Dr.

* Gen. Epaphras Hoyt, historian, was born in Deer-
field, Mass., December 31, 1765; died there Feb-
ruary 8, 1850. He held many civil and military
offices, was major-general of the Massachusetts
militia and devoted his life to perfecting the volun-
teer militia system of the country. He had a com-
mission sent him by the secretary of war of the
United States by Gen. Knox, dated June 5, 1794,
but circumstances prevented his acceptance of it.
Soon after his death, the late Luther B. Lincoln,
an intimate friend of Gen. Hoyt, and principal
of the Deerfield academy (of which Gen. Hoyt
was a trustee), delivered an address upon his life and

General Hoyfs Visit. 183

Willard, of Albany, standing near the site of Bemis'
house, which gave the name to Gates' camp.

Resolving to give the battle grounds a thorough
reconnoisance, in the morning we set out on foot
and traversed the fields in various directions. My
companion, one of the heroes of the battle of the 7th

character before the lyceum of that village, which
was published March 10, 1851. His published works
are: "Discipline for the Cavalry" (1798); "Prac-
tical Illustrations for Military Officers, with Plates
and Military Dictionary" (1811); "Cavalry Disci-
pline and Rules and Regulations for Drill and Saber
Exercise, etc., Illustrated with Plates" (1813); and
"Antiquarian Researches, or Indian Wars" (1824).
At his death he left completed, with maps, a work for
publication entitled, " Burgoyne's Campaigns," and
had partly finished a history of the French and
Indian wars.

The following is an extract from Prof. Lincoln's
address: "The spirit of generous philanthropy,
which was a distinguished trait in Gen. Hoyt's char-
acter, was accompanied by a delicate sense of honor,
not that foolish passion which sometimes creeps into
the weak mind under an assumed name and makes
such havoc of the inflamed soul, as ridiculous as it is
void of principle, but that sense of true honor which
demands from the world acknowledgment of its in-
alienable rights, the defense due to its birthright as
a child of God, and a corresponding readiness to pay
the same full, generous overflowing measure of
respect into the bosom of every object in the form of
humanity. This trait, I think, must have been
eminently marked by all of you who knew him. For

184 General Hoyfs Visit.

of October, appeared alive to the many associations
connected with that important event. We first traced
the lines of Gates' camp, which in some places still
furrow the ground, particularly on the extreme left,
where the curtains and bastions are distinctly to be
seen. The old red house, not far from the centre of
the camp, now fast going to decay, where Gates had
his headquarters, was not passed without notice.

myself I can as well conceive of the truth of a mathe-
matical absurdity as of the soul of Gen. Hoyt con-
ceiving of a base action.

" During a journey which I took with Gen. Hoyt
some years ago, after visiting Lake George, with its
Fort William Henry and its 1,000 graves, Williams'
Rock and Bloody Pond, Fort Edward, with the melan-
choly resting-place of the innocent Jane McCrea, and
other scenes thick set with the memories of dark and
foul deed for which thou, O, spirit of injustice, thou
awful genius of unholy war, thou art responsible ;
with the departure of the morning hours we were
leaving behind us the immediate vicinities of those
bloody deeds, and the soul seemed to breathe in
again the sweet influences of unpolluted nature.
Around us universal tranquility reigned ; when sud-
denly we came within sight of an humble tenement
in the town of Saratoga. ' There,' said the general,
' is a dwelling memorable for events of darker days.
In the times of the Revolution it was a house of one
story only; a second within a few years has been
added, but the lower part remains unaltered, and the
arrangements of the rooms, the floors, etc., remain
the same as in days of yore.' "

General Hoyfs Visit. 185

This my companion well recollected, and he pointed
to the spot where he had been planted as a sentinel.
A small distance east of the house, at the time of
the battles, stood a barn in which many of the
wounded were deposited ; but the foundation only
remains to mark the spot. The fields adjacent, once
the scene of bustle and military preparation, now
present a calm and solitary aspect ; and here the
bones of many a patriot who died of wounds received
in the two actions of the igth of September and yth
of October, rest in obscurity. My companion pointed
out the spot where twenty-eight of these heroes were
interred in one grave ; and near this spot the veteran
Col. Breyman and Sir Francis Clark, Burgoyne's
aid-de-camp, mortally wounded and taken prisoners
in the second action, mixed their remains with their
brave conquerors.

After noticing the ground occupied by the differ-
ent regiments and brigades, and listening to the many
anecdotes of my companion, we continued our route
across Nelson's farm on an eminence, in advance of
Gates' camp, the frequent post of Morgan's riflemen,
and passing a ravine and an open field beyond, we
reached a wood where his regiment was drawn up,
on the right of Gates7 line, where they hove up a
slight work of logs in the battle of the 7th of October.
From this point, crossing other fields westerly, and a
bridge over a rill, we rose to higher ground, Bur-
goyne's point of appui in the same battle, and a little
further north formed en potence, and crowning a height
24

1 86 General Hoyfs Visit.

stood Major Acland's British grenadiers, the most
sanguinary point of the contest.

The British line extended from this point westerly
about a third of a mile, crossing two open fields and
an intervening copse of wood, to some high grounds
within view ; the right occupied by Brigadier-General
Fraser's elite, consisting of the Twenty-Fourth Regi-
ment and Lord Balcarras' light infantry ; the centre
and left of the British and German troops of the line,
under Generals Phillips and Riedesel. Eight pieces
of cannon, two of which were twelve pounders, were
posted along the line, besides two howitzers in front
of Fraser's elite. On the south, in front of the line,
the ground falls off to a rill, then covered with brush,
from which the American columns debouched, as
they advanced to the attack, under a heavy fire from
the British artillery.

The battle at this place commenced on the British
left, by General Poor's brigade, and soon after on
the right by Colonel Morgan's and Major Dearborn's
corps, and the whole line was soon engaged.* Mor-

* The effective usefulness of the famous body of ex-
perienced riflemen under Morgan, in checking the
aggressive and savage bands of Indians which Gen.
Burgoyne had connected with his army, was soon
apparent to Gen. Gates to whom Washington had
sent it in August. The corps, as soon as it reached
the northern army, not only worsted the Indians in
the various encounters in which they became con-
fronted, but it also created such a panic among the
redmen that they at once lost all interest in fighting

General Hoyfs Visit. 187

gan and Dearborn having turned and broken the
right flank of Balcarras" infantry, and Acland's
grenadiers on the left, being hard pressed by Poor,

and scouting for Burgoyne, and hastily departed to
their homes. Gates then employed the corps as
sharp-shooters and skirmishers, in which line of duty
it did splended service. After Washington's army
had been compelled, after the battle of Brandywine,
to retire before the larger force of Sir William Howe,
the commanding general's situation was such as to
induce him to ask for it's return to him. His letter
to Major-General Gates, embodying the request, is
as follows :

" CAMP NEAR POTTSGROVE, Sept. 24, 1777.

" SIR — This army has not been able to oppose
General Howe with the success that was wished, and
needs a reinforcement. I therefore request, if you
have been so fortunate as to oblige General Bur-
goyne to retreat to Ticonderoga, and if you have not,
and circumstances will admit, that you will order
Colonel Morgan to join me again with his corps. I
sent him up when I thought you materially wanted
him, and if his services can be dispensed with now,
you will direct him to return immediately. You will
perceive I do not mention this in way of command, but
leave you to determine upon it according to your
situation ; if they come they should proceed by way
of water from Albany as low down as Peekskill ; in
such case you will give Colonel Morgan the neces-
sary orders to join me with dispatch.

'• I am Sir, your most obedient servant,
" Go. WASHINGTON.

" MAJOR-GENERAL GATES."

General Hoyt's Visit.

Burgoyne despatched orders for Eraser's elite to re-
tire from the right, and form a second line to support
the left. In executing this order, Fraser having
arrived in the rear of the left, followed by Morgan,
received a mortal wound and was carried off the
field.

Mr. Walker, who resides a little distance in the
rear of the ground occupied by the British line,
pointed out to us the site of two huts which stood
near the centre of the left, and here my companion
recollected to have seen the ground covered with
dead the morning after the action. Near this spot
Major Williams, of the artillery, and Captain Money,
D. Q. M. General, and several other officers, were
captured by Americans, and eight pieces of cannon
were taken.

The ground occupied by the left of the British line
may be known by a solitary poplar tree standing on
the side of the road marked with the initials of some
person's name, near which the ground falls off to the
east.

After viewing this sanguinary spot, and analyzing
the movements of the different corps, we passed
along the road northerly to the point where General
Fraser received his wound. Walker's blacksmith
shop is about twenty rods north of the place, and not
far from the same, Sir Francis Clark, Burgoyne's
aid-de-camp, also received his wound as he was con-
veying orders from Burgoyne to Phillips and
Riedesel.

General Hoyt's Visit. 189

Proceeding northerly, forty or fifty rods, we ar-
rived at the house of the younger Walker, situated
on an eminence, which, with several others, extending
northerly, were occupied by Eraser's elite during
most of the battle of the igth of September.

Here General Larnerd's brigade and Marshall's
regiment were engaged toward the close of the bat-
tle of that day, and near Walker's barn, situated a
little east of the house, stood the British grenadiers op-
posed to Marshall's regiment, as darkness commenced.
Near the barn Walker had just discovered and dis-
interred the skeleton of a man killed in the action by
a ball which perforated the back of the skull, and a
circular piece, cut out by the ball, was found, exactly
fitting the perforation. The bones indicated a man
of a large size, from which, and knowing the ground
to have been the position of the British grenadiers
in the first action, we concluded he must have been
one of that corps. Further to the right, and west-
ward of Walker's house, we noticed the spot where
the late Governor Brooks, of Massachusetts, then
lieutenant-colonel of Jackson's regiment, sustained
his nocturnal attack from Breyman's German grena-
diers. (See Gordon, vol. 2. letter 8th.)

Continuing our route northerly along Eraser's
heights, we turned to the right, across lower ground,
and rose a gentle hill covered with trees of recent
growth, the fortified position of Colonel Breyton in
the action of the ;th of October. This fortification
was a temporary work of logs and rails, and has dis-

i go General Hoyts Visit.

appeared. Every inch of this ground presents inter-
esting associations, and with eager steps we traversed
the hill to find some relic or trace of the gallantry
of the men who fought on this spot, but all marks
are obliterated. With deep sensations we now sur-
veyed the open field, over which Lieutenant-Colonel
Brooks led on Jackson's regiment, under a heavy
fire, in his gallant charge on these works in the battle
of the 7th of October, and penetrated them a few
moments before General Arnold galloped in through
a sally port and received his wound. Other regi-
ments then advancing, the post was carried at every
point, and about two hundred of the enemy made
prisoners, while the remainder made their escape into
the woods in the rear, leaving two pieces of cannon
in the hands of the Americans.

Passing over the hill we descended to a beautiful
opening on the east side, the camp of Breyman's
German brigade, back of which is a ravine and rill
where Breyman was found by the victors mortally
wounded, taken up and sent to Gates' camp, where
he died. This post formed the right flank of the
British fortified camp, and its capture exposed other
points to an attack in the rear. Sensible of its im-
portance, Burgoyne, on first hearing that it was car-
ried, gave orders for its recovery, but though they
were positive, they were not obeyed, and Larnerd's
brigade held the post unmolested through the night.

General Wilkinson states, in his memoirs, that
Arnold, during the attack on Breyman's post, turned

General Hoyfs Visit. 191

its right, at the head of a few riflemen, and threw
himself into the rear, where his leg was broken and
his horse killed under him. The general was not an
eye witness to the event, and, probably, through mis-
information has given it erroneously. That Arnold
was wounded within the works, after passing the sally
port, has been repeatedly asserted by Governor
Brooks, as well as others who saw the whole.

Quitting this interesting spot we passed on south-
erly over the ground where stood the two block
houses so gallantly stormed by detachments from
Brooks' regiment, in the same action, and the com-
manders, Lieutenants Wiley and Goodrich, and many
of their men, killed ; and turning easterly through a
copse of wood, reached a road in the rear of Free-
man's field. Along this road, still flanked by woods,
Burgoyne formed the Qth, 2ist, 626. and 2Oth regi-
ments (this was the order from right to left), and
Captain Jones' brigade of grenadiers, previous to the
sanguinary contest on the igth of September, while
Major Forbes, with the British van, pressed into the
field, was attacked by Morgan near Freeman's hut,
and driven back to the British line in the woods, and
Morgan, in turn, broken and forced back in the
woods south of the field.

Continuing southerly in the road, and crossing a
small ravine, we entered Freeman's bloody field, and a
few rods south, the house of Mr. Leggett, who now
resides on the farm embracing the field of battle. At
the time of the battle the field was an oblong of from

1 92 General Hoyfs Visit.

seventy to eighty rods in length, east and west, by
about thirty in breadth, inclosed by a worm fence,
and surrounded by woods. Near the centre is an
elevation extending from Leggett's house nearly at
right angles across the field, upon which a hut and
small barn were situated, and near the latter the ele-
vation terminated at a narrow ravine extending
parallel to the field. South of this ravine are other
elevations sloping off gently to level ground south,
the whole then covered with woods in which the
Americans were drawn up in the first part of the
battle of the iQth of September.

No part of the ground we had traversed presents
more interesting associations than this field. Here
British valor and veteran skill were successfully op-
posed by native bravery and patriotic ardor, and here it
was that the proud Briton was compelled to acknowl-
edge the fallacy of his boasted declaration, "that the
Americans would fight only under cover of woods
and intrenchments, and that they were incapable of
sustaining a fair and equal conflict in the open
field."

While at Leggett's we were presented with balls
and several fractured implements of muskets found
on the field, among which was part of a brass guard
numbered XX, supposed to belong to that regiment.

We were now upon the ground occupied by the
62d British regiment, commanded by Colonel Ans-
truther during most of the battle of the igth, flanked
on the right by the 2ist, and on the left by the 2oth

General Hoyfs Visit. 193

regiments, the whole under Brigadier-General Hamil-
ton, the gth of the same brigade being drawn off and
posted in the rear of the field as a corps de reserve,
and here this brigade, with the artillery under Cap-
tain Jones, bore the brunt of the battle for about
four hours, hand-to-hand, with the Americans, and
human life was profusely expended.

A few rods southerly of Leggett's barn we noticed
the ground where Morgan and Dearborn attacked
the British when under Major Forbes; and here the
regiments of Cilley* and Scammel, of Poor's brigade,

* Col. Cilley, who served throughout the war with
reputation, was a man of temperance, economy, great
industry, decision of character and sound judgment.
The following anecdote, among many others (see
" Life of Caleb Stark "), is related of him : During
the armistice prior to the peace of 1783, several
American officers visited New York. Rivington,
the king's printer, kept a book store which was a
lounging place for British officers. At this time an
American officer entered the store, purchased several
books which he directed to be sent to his lodgings,
and, calling for a pen, wrote his name and address.
" What," said a British colonel, half reclining on a
sofa, "an American write his name!" "If I can-
not," was the prompt answer of Col. Cilley, " I can
make my mark," and, suiting the action to the word,
drew his sword and applied the flat of it to the
British officer's face. The latter departed saying
that he " would hear from him." The intrepid
Colonel, however, heard no more from him. This
anecdote is but one, of many, showing the contempti-

25

194 General Hoyfs Visit.

a battalion under Major Hull, Morgan's and Dear-
born's corps, renewed the battle on Hamilton's
brigade, which was vigorously maintained on both
sides, each alternatively giving and gaining the
ground ; and here, about three o'clock in the after-
noon, the remainder of Poor's brigade, with some
other regiments, came up on the left and pressed into
action, and the fire was continued with alternate ad-
vantage on both sides until smoke and nightfall ren-
dered objects undiscernible, when the action termi-
nated precisely on the ground where it commenced.
Among the officers who fell at this place, on the
part of the Americans, were Lieutenant-Colonel Col-
burn, of Cilley's, and Lieutenant-Colonel Adams, of
Male's New Hampshire regiments. The 62d British
regiment was literally cut to pieces ; after the action
it did not exceed sixty men and five or six officers
fit for duty. Colonel Anstruther, and his major,
Harmage, were wounded. During the contest the
field presented a scene of horror appalling even to
veteran troops; the British officers were constantly
falling under the fatal fire, or carried off the field

ble feeling of the English, not only at that time, but
at the present (1894) ; and yet our " British cousins"
think it strange that the people of the United States
have more sympathy with autocratic Russia than with
their hypocritical monarchy ! and with Gladstone at
their head — a man who, had he had his way, would
have, during our late Civil war, been glad to have
seen our republic dismembered !

General Hoyt's Visit. 195

wounded; the ranks thinned and the artillery men
nearly annihilated. Out of forty-eight men stationed
at the guns under Captain Jones, who fell, thirty-six
were killed or badly wounded, and among the offi-
cers only one lieutenant escaped, and he with a shot
through his hat.

Passing the small ravine south of Leggett's barn
we rose an elevation, the post with another on a knoll
a little further west, strongly fortified, and the woods
cleared off by Burgoyne after the battle of the igth.
These elevations were occupied by Lord Balcarras'
light infantry after their retreat from the first posi-
tion, south of the elder Walker's, in the battle of the
7th of October, and here, towards the close of the
day, Arnold, with Poor's and Patterson's brigades,
made his desperate attack, and was repulsed, and he,
with his horse, entangled in the surrounding abattis,
from which, with the utmost difficulty, he extracted
himself while under a heavy fire of grape and can-
nister from the British batteries. " A more deter-
mined perseverance," says the British commander,
" than the Americans showed in this attack upon the
lines, though they were finally repulsed by the corps
under Lord Balcarras, I believe is not in any officer's
experience." Had the assailants been less embarassed
with the abattis, probably they would have covered
the works, though manned with Burgoyne's best
troops.

From this elevation we had a fair view of the
greatest part of the battle grounds and the line of

196 General Hoyfs Visit.

Burgoyne's camp, taken up subsequently to the battle
of the igth, and in which the principal part of the
army continued until that of the 7th of October.
North and east of Leggett's house was the camp of
Eraser's elite, flanked on the left by Hamilton's bri-
gade, and further on the left, extending to the river
hills, that of the German troops under Riedesel, ex-
cepting Breyman's command, which was to the right
of Eraser, formed en potence to the main line ; the
whole covered by temporary works which are now
nearly obliterated. In the meadow in the rear of the
left of Riedesel's German corps was the British hos-
pital camp, protected by several batteries, and three
redoubts, on the projecting points of as many hills,
overlooking the meadow.

The grounds adjacent, at the time of the battles,
were covered with woods, but now present, in some
parts, fields under cultivation. North of Freeman's
field the woods are still standing, exhibiting the
exact features of 1777, and the road through them,
where Burgoyne first formed the four regiments of
Hamilton's brigade, is still distinctly seen.

In passing over these sanguinary fields my com-
panion appeared to be highly excited by the many
recollections which rushed upon his mind, and the
circumstance of our visit happening on the 48th anni-
versary of the battle of the 7th of October presented
the various scenes in a most striking point of view.
Nor did my my own feelings remain " indifferent and
unmoved."

General Hoyfs Visit. 197

To walk with callous indifference over ground once
the scene of blood and carnage, of occasional fear
and triumph, and these heightened by the recollec-
tion that many of our acquaintance shared in them,
may comport with minds steeled to sensibility ; but
those of a different stamp, in which are included a
majority of the reflecting part of mankind, will be
differently affected. Nor are lessons drawn from
such scenes destitute of utility. They fix the mind
on the characters of the heroes who perished in the
cause of our country, stimulate to noble exploits, and
fill the mind with just reflections on the value of our
dear bought liberties. With a portion of these feel-
ings we returned to Ketchum's tavern, passing again
over part of Gates' camp.

On our route to our quarters we fell in with a
Quaker gentleman who resides in the vicinity, with
whom we had some conversation on the scenes that
had been exhibited in these fields, and, notwithstand-
ing his aversion to military exploits, he appeared to
be interested on hearing that my companion was one
of the men who had fought for his country. And
in traversing over the battle grounds, we were wel-
comed to the hospitable mansions of several of these
people, who evinced an interest in our researches,
and gave us their aid in pointing out the most re-
markable places on the battle fields. An elderly
lady remarked, that she resided on a farm in the
vicinity of Saratoga lake at the time of the battle, and
heard the terrible roar of the dreadful cannon, and that

198 General Hoyfs Visit.

British reconnoitering parties frequently visited her
house, from whom she received very civil treatment,
and gave them, in return, such refreshments as her
mansion furnished.

Before we left Ketchum's we reconnoitered the
banks of the Hudson, and my companion pointed out
the spot where Gates threw over a bridge to connect
with the left bank, and the ground where he recol-
lected to have seen a tribe of American Indians en-
camped.

The freight boats constantly passing along the
canal, within a few yards of our traverse, afforded
us a passage about two and one-half miles, up to
Smith's tavern, the cottage in which the unfortunate
General Fraser died of his wounds the morning after
the battle of the 7th of October, where we arrived at
dark after making half a dozen very submissive bows
to the bridges stretching across the canal, an embar-
rassment we had not anticipated, and which requires
some caution to avoid a broken head. On this route
we passed the left flank of the British camp, on the
west of the eminence, and the ravine from which the
British sharp-shooters wounded General Lincoln the
day succeeding the last battle on the heights.

Smith's house, which stood at the foot of the hill
at the period of the battles, and has been drawn for-
ward to the road on the bank of the river, is situated
in a handsome meadow bordering on the Hudson,
the same embraced by Burgoyne's hospital camp, and
taken up by his whole army in the night succeeding

General Hoyts Visit. 199

the second battle. In the morning we traversed
over ground, noticing the places most remarkable for
interesting events, and, among others, the elevated
hill on which General Eraser was buried under the
fire of American artillery posted in a meadow below,
so eloquently described by Burgoyne in his account of
his expedition. A few yards below the great ravine,
so called by the British officers, we noticed the point
where Burgoyne's bridge of boats was thrown across
the Hudson, at the head of which, on the left bank,
are the remains of his tete de pont. The bed of the
great ravine, through which a road formerly led from
the hospital camp to that on the height, is now
flowed by the water of the canal. South of the ra-
vine are the heights on which Balcarras' light infantry
was posted during the 8th of October, and here seve-
ral skirmishes took place between the British and
American sharp-shooters, in one of which General
Lincoln was wounded, as has been noted. Of the
three redoubts on the hills adjoining the meadow,
little or no remains are to be seen, excepting that in
the center, where Fraser was buried, which is still
distinct. The remains of another work may be
traced in the meadow a short distance south of
Smith's, near which was posted the park of artillery.
In the bar room of Smith's tavern General Fraser
breathed his last, and there, says Madame Riedesel,
who quartered at the same place, " I often heard him
exclaim with a sigh, ' Oh, fatal ambition ! Poor Gene-
ral Burgoyne ! Oh, my poor wife ! '

2OO General Hoyfs Visit.

Several late tourists, through a very natural mis-
take, have called Smith's house, S^vordys house ; the
latter, it appears by Burgoyne's plans, was situated
about a mile above at his camp, taken up on the i 7th
of September ; the house is now demolished.*

In the early part of the day we left the hospital
camp, and in a stage proceeded up the river six
miles to Schuylerville, at Fish Creek, in Saratoga,
the scene of Burgoyne's last struggles, passing on

* The site of " Sword's house " is on the south side
of a spring brook about fifty yards west of the Hud-
son river, a few rods north of the south line of the
town of Old Saratoga, and is, as Gen. Hoyt says,
about a mile north of where the " Smith house "
formerly stood. It may be readily found from its
being about thirty rods north of a highway leading
from the Hudson river road westerly, which highway
is the first one north of Wilbur's basin. This high-
way was nearly the same at the time of Burgoyne's
visit, in 1777, as now. All traces of the house are
now (1894) obliterated save a few bricks and a slight
depression in the soil where was the cellar. A son
of the owner of this house, Thos. Sword, who was
born at Fort George, on Lake George, Jan. 5, 1 764,
was for fifty years a publisher and bookseller in the
city of New York, and for twenty years vestryman
in Trinity church in that city. He died in New
York, June 27, 1843. A white marble tablet in
Trinity church, New York, in the alcove of Astor
memorial, south side, marks his last resting place.
The tablet was erected to his memory by Trinity
church corporation.

General Hoyfs Visit, 201

the route the British camp at Sword's house, and the
elevated ground on which the British army halted
on its retreat on the morning of the gth of October,
at what was then called Dovecote, or Van Vechtiris
Creek. This spot is rendered memorable from the
interesting relation Burgoyne has given of Lady Har-
riet Acland, who here embarked in a boat, and de-
scended to Gates' camp, attended by Mr. Brudenel,
chaplain of the artillery. A short distance south of
the site of the old church at Schuylerville we noticed
the place where the right of Gates' camp rested on
the roth of October.

The retreat of the British army from the hospital
camp to Fish Greek was attended with many embar-
rassments. It commenced about nine o'clock in the
evening, and, as it was apprehended that the Ameri-
cans would pass upon the rear, a strong body of the
best troops under General Phillips was ordered to
cover the march ; General Riedesel commanded the
van. From the nature of the country, and the dark-
ness of the night, the movement was difficult as well
as critical ; the artillery and such baggage as could
not be embarked in boats were to be dragged along
a narrow road composed of argillaceous soil, over
which the stoutest horses could, with difficulty, draw
an ordinary load, and with the emaciated and jaded
animals of the army an empty carriage was a burden
almost beyond their power. Besides, the army was
liable to an attack at every step, from the woods on
the left ; nor were the boats less exposed in stem-
26

2O2 General Hoyfs Visit.

ming the river from the attacks of the militia posted
along the left bank, who were secure during the
darkness from annoyance from the artillery. To
add to these difficulties a heavy rain commenced
which converted the road into perfect quagmire, and
rendered the march of the baggage next to impossible,
and their total loss was apprehended. General Phil-
lips was ordered to bend his whole attention to the
covering of the army by taking a position that would
enable it to form in order of battle without regard-
ing the column of baggage, and to rely exclusively
on the bayonet. Under such embarrassments the
loss of several provision boats and baggage wagons
is not surprising.

After a short respite at the stage-house in Schuy-
lerville we prepared for a reconnoisance of Bur-
goyne's camp, which extended along the heights from
Lemson's, now Bushett's house, the same occupied
by Madame Riedesel (see her narrative), nearly
opposite the mouth of the Battenkill, to an eminence
about three-fourths of a mile south-west of our
tavern, and here was Burgoyne's headquarters, the
strongest point of his position. On an elevation in
the meadow north-east of the village the park of
artillery was posted under the cover of some tem-
porary works. Excepting two or three open fields,
the position of the army was principally covered with
woods, but the meadow was open, cultivated ground.
At the mouth of Fish creek, on the north side, are
the ruins of Fort Hardy, built in the French war, by

General Hoyfs Visit. 203

many erroneously supposed to be the work of Bur-
goyne, and through the meadow now passes the
northern canal, presenting an extensive triangular
basin on the north of Fish creek, and over this is an
aqueduct. South of the creek is Schuyler's house,
standing nearly on the site of General Schuyler's,
burnt by Burgoyne. The old church which stood
on the height south-west of this house, in 1777, is
demolished, and a handsome new one is now pleas-
antly situated in a recess of a grove on the height
west of the village.

Arriving at the works on the elevation, at the ex-
treme right of Burgoyne's camp, the lines, encom-
passing several acres, were easily traced, presenting
saliant and rentrant angles, and here were posted
the Qth, 2ist, and 24th regiments, the British grena-
diers, Balcarras' light infantry, Captain Eraser's
rangers, and the American volunteers. The left of
the camp, on a ridge, north of the village, nearly
parallel to the river, was occupied by Riedesel's
Germans ; and the central ground, by the 2oth, 47th,
and 62d British regiments, the German grenadiers,
and Barnes' corps, partially covered by entrench-
ments. Farther west, in the margin of the woods,
were the Yagers and Canadians. Their out-posts
extended along the north side of Fish Creek, from
its mouth to the right of the camp. The position here
described is that held at the time of the convention,
The right of Gates' camp was about a mile south of
Fish Creek, and the line extended into the woods

General Hoyfs Visit.

over elevated ground, opposite to Burgoyne's right,
and the advanced posts were near the creek opposite
those of the British.

In passing over the right of the British camp my
companion found himself on interesting ground, and
with hasty steps we proceeded to the spot where his
regiment, commanded by Colonel. Woodbridge, of
Massachusetts, was drawn up in the woods, within a
few yards of the British entrenchment, prepared for
an assault on the morning of the nth October, 1777.
To comprehend this movement it is necessary to re-
cur to details. On the night of the loth Gates was
led to believe that Burgoyne, leaving his fires burn-
ing under the care of a few pickets, had left his camp
and retreated up the Hudson, on which he gave
orders for a forward movement to seize the aban-
doned camp. At daybreak the next morning, being
very foggy, Patterson's and Larnerd's brigades, with
Morgan's corps and Woodbridge's regiment, were
put in motion towards the British right; and Nixon's
and Glover's brigades, at the same time, moved up
the meadow and the former crossed Fish creek, and
surprised a British picket in old Fort Hardy. The fog
at this time dispersing the British army was found in
their position, ready for an attack, and the park of artil-
lery immediately opened fire upon the American
column, threw it into some disorder, and compelled it
to recross the creek ; the two brigades then returned
to camp. Finding that Gates had ordered the move-
ment under a misapprehension of the position of

General Hoyfs Visit. 205

the British army, Adjutant-General Wilkinson, who
had attended the movement of Nixon and Glover,*

*In this connection, and to show how vivid the
early Colonial and Revolutionary days are brought
before the mind, making them seem as of yesterday,
the following clipping from the New York Sun of
February 20, 1894, is of supreme interest:

" Biograpical glimpses of two of the Revolution-
ary heroes are given in a pension bill recently re-
ported to the House by Mr. Beauchamp Clark, of
Missouri. The beneficiary of the bill is Mrs.
Hannah Lyons, ninety-one years of age. She is the
daughter of John Russell, a private in Glover's
famous marine regiment, which rendered such con-
spicuous services during the revolutionary war, nota-
bly at Princeton, Saratoga, and in Valley Forge, and
in transporting the army of Washington across the
ice-bound Delaware on the night before the battle of
Trenton. This battle has recently been commemo-
rated by the erection of a monument at Trenton,
N. J., and the statue of a private soldier on guard at
the door of the monument is that of her father, John
Russell, of Marblehead. Mrs. Lyons is also a niece
of the naval Revolutionary hero, James Mugford,
whose successful capture of the British transport
Hope, laden with munitions of war in May, 1776,
in full view of the British fleet anchored in Nan-
tucket Roads, supplied Washington and his army
with arms and ammunition at a critical time in the
affairs of the colonies. Such is the patriotic record
of the family from which this aged lady descended
in whose behalf this bill is favorably reported."

To the same purport: Rev. Marinus Willett, a son
of Col. Marinus Willett, the hero of Fort Stanwix

206 General Hoyfs Visit.

immediately put spurs to his horse, pushed up the
creek, and crossing over at a mill about three-

and an Indian fighter of the Old French War, 1744-
50 — is yet, 1894, living on Jersey City Heights, N. J,
My son, Mr. Arthur D. Stone, who called on him in
January of this year, 1894, found him still remarka-
bly hale and hearty, and in full enjoyment of his
physical and mental powers. He it was who, as a
labor of filial piety, edited and published his father's
Narrative. Rev. Mr. Willett has long been favora-
bly known as the author of The Life of Summer-
Jield, The Life of the Messiah, and other works of a
religious nature. Indeed, to see and converse, in the
year of our Lord 1894. with the son of an Indian
fighter of the old French war and a distinguished sol-
dier of the Revolution is not only a very great privi-
lege, but, as above remarked, makes the old Colonial
days seem as of yesterday. In this connection one
cannot but recall another similar instance of a lady
who died in 1893. She was the wife of the late Ran-
som Cook, of Saratoga Springs (nee Ayers), whose
father, Robert Ayers, was the person who conveyed
to Jane McCrea the message of her lover, David
Jones, requesting her to submit herself to an Indian
escort, who would convey her into Burgoyne's camp,
where they were to be immediately married. Mrs.
Mary Cook Millard, wife of the late Ira Millard,
died at her home in Beach street, Ballston, N. Y., on
June 4, 1894. Mrs. Millard was born in Vermont in
1800, and was in her ninety-fourth year. She was a
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Cook, of Sara-
toga. In her early childhood she went to the town
of Malta and later came to this village. Her entire
life had been spent within two miles of this place

General Hoyfs Visit. 207

quarters of a mile above Schuyler's,* found Mor-
gan's, Patterson's, and Larnerd's brigades, with
Woodbridge's regiment on the right, advancing
through the woods and approximating the British
lines. In front, for about twenty yards, the trees
had been felled and sharpened to a strong abattis,
and Woodbridge's regiment had laid down their
packs and approached within ten yards of the open-
ing; the British, lying close under the intrenchment,
ready to open their fire as soon as their assailants
were uncovered by the woods. At this moment Wil-
kinson rode up and directed the colonel to fall back,
on which the regiment came about and retired about
thirty yards to a depression in the ground, where
the men were covered from the direct fire of the
enemy. With a temerity truly characteristic of
young troops, individuals then advanced, and posting
themselves behind trees, opened a scattering fire
upon the enemy, who were now indistinctly seen
through the fog, and received theirs in return. My
companion pointed me to a large pine, not exceeding
thirty yards from the British works, behind which he,

In iSiSshewas united in marriage to Ira Millard,
who died in 1891. She is survived by two sons,
Eleazar Millard, of Malta, and Nelson Millard, of
East Orange, N. Y., and one sister, Mrs. Henry
Loomis.

* The present dam on Fish Creek at Victory Mills,
Saratoga County, N. Y., marks \h& precise spot here
referred to.

208 General Hoyfs Visit.

with several others, covered themselves while eagerly
popping at the enemy's heads, seen over the parapet;
while here he barely escaped a shot aimed at an uncov-
ered part of his body, and having expended several car-
tridges the party fell back to the regiment, and soon
after the whole retired to Fish Creek, opposite to the
mills, where they were ordered to throw up defensive
lines. In the meantime, Patterson's and Larnerd's
brigades, with Morgan's corps on the left, approached
the British lines, and were on the point of opening
their fire when Wilkinson rode up and informed
Larnerd, who commanded in the absence of Patter-
son, of the result of the movement in the meadow,
and advised an immediate retreat, on which the line
came about and retired ; but before they were masked
by the woods the enemy opened a fire of artillery and
musketry, and several were killed. The two brigades
continued their retreat to an open field, where they
hove up lines and remained until Burgoyne surren-
dered ; Morgan at the same time took a position in
the woods in the rear of the British right.

As a striking illustration of the indifference with
which soldiers regard danger, and soon become
callous to the tender feelings common to a life of
domestic tranquility, I cannot omit to notice a fact
given by my companion. The men composing the
regiment had been in service but a few months, but
in general they had been habituated to hardships and
were strangers to the delicacies of affluent life.
When the regiment had retired the short distance of

General Hoyfs Visit. 209

sixty yards from the British intrenchments, to lower
ground, where the men were covered from the fire of
the enemy, they sat down at their ease and entered
into familiar conversation ; in one instance he noticed
a soldier leisurely combing the head of his messmate,
while the bullets of the enemy were whistling over
their heads and cutting the limbs of the trees.

Passing from the British right to the mill on Fish
creek my companion noticed the spot where one of
their advanced sentinels shot a woman who had left
the British camp to procure water from a brook
winding through a little ravine, on the bank of which
the sentinel was posted. She had been challenged
but refused to comply with the strict orders of the
sentinel, on which he fired and gave her a fatal shot.*

Reaching the creek, we passed it on floating tim-
ber, resting against the mill dam, and my companion
remembered that his regiment passed the mill pond
in the same manner and at the same place as they
advanced to attack the British lines as had been re-
lated; and continuing our route along a road on the
right bank of the creek we came to the salient point
of a hill near Schuyler's house, where a picket, of
which he was one, was attacked by a party of the
British in the night of the loth of October, but after

* This incident should not be confounded with the
woman of whom Madame Riedesel speaks, as this
spot was some mile and a half south of Mrs. Riedesel's
heroine, who, by the way, instead of being killed,
lived and was rewarded.
27

2io General Hoyfs Visit.

a little random firing and a few discharges of a field-
piece which advanced to the spot, the enemy fell back.

Proceeding thence to the meadow near Fort Hardy
and looking over the ground where Burgoyne piled
his arms on the i ;th of October, we returned to our
quarters, where we were shown several cannon balls
taken from the ground in excavating the canal.

Bushett's house,* near the left of the German camp,
in which Madame Riedesel had her quarters while
the British army lay at this place, has been repaired
by its present owner, and he informed me that the
marks of the cannon balls mentioned in the narrative
of that lady were to be seen when first occupied by
him. The American battery from which the house
was cannonaded was planted on the opposite bank of
the Hudson above the mouth of the Battenkill. It
is justly due to the officer who directed the fire, the
Hon. Maj.-Gen. Ebenezer Mattoon, and since
adjutant-general of the militia of Massachusetts,
then a lieutenant in the artillery, to state that the
unfortunate condition of the people in the house was
unknown, and that it was supposed to be the quarters
of some of the enemy's general officers.

The country embracing the operation of the armies
under Generals Gates and Burgoyne is daily becom-
ing more interesting to travelers, and many resort
there for the gratification of a laudable curiosity. As
time elapses it will be sought with more avidity, and

* Now known as the " Marshall house."

General Hoyfs Visit. 2 1 1

future generations may in vain seek for the scenes
of these important events, unless they are marked by
some durable memorial. As a taste for monuments
is now increasing in our country it is to be hoped
that the events connected with the capture of the
British army, the pivot on which our revolutionary
struggle turned, will not be neglected.

The elevation on the Freeman farm presents a
favorable site for a monument, on which should be
engraved the names of the principal patriots who fell
in the two actions with an appropriate inscription.
Another to mark the ground of surrender at Schuyler-
ville would be highly gratifying to future genera-
tions.*

* Were Gen. Hoyt now living he would be highly
gratified to see how his ideas in this matter have been
carried out in the magnificent monument at Schuyler-
ville commemorating Burgoyne's surrender. See
note ante regarding the Saratoga monument under
the Due de Liancourt's visit.

SAMUEL WOODRUFF'S VISIT TO THE BATTLE
GROUND IN 1827.

[The following account of a visit to the field of
Saratoga, on .the fiftieth anniversary of that battle,
viz.: October i/th, 1827, was written immediately
afterward for the use of the late Col. William L.
Stone, for his Life of Brant. The writer, the late
venerable Samuel Woodruff, Esq., of Windsor,
(Conn.), was a participator in that battle:]

WINDSOR, Conn., October 31, 1827.

MY DEAR SIR — You may remember when I had
the pleasure to dine with you at New York on the
1 4th inst., I had set out on a tour to Saratoga to
gratify a desire I felt, and which had long been in-
creasing, to view the battle grounds at that place,
and the spot on which the royal army under the com-
mand of General Burgoyne surrendered to General
Gates on the i7th of October, 1777.

I thought it would add something to the interest
of that view to me, to be there on the 1 7th, exactly
half a century after that memorable event took place.
You will excuse me for entering a little into the feel-
ings of Uncle Toby respecting Dendermond in the

Samuel Woodruff 's Visit. 213

compressed and hastily written journal I kept of my
tour, especially as you will take into consideration
that I had the honor to serve as a volunteer under
General Gates, part of that campaign, and was in
the battle of the 7th of October.

I take the liberty to enclose you an extract of that
part of my journal which embraces the principal ob-
ject of my tour.

Oct. 1 7th. After a short stop in Troy, took an-
other stage for Saratoga ; at Lansingburgh, a neat
and handsome village, about three miles from Troy,
crossed the Hudson on a covered bridge of excellent
workmanship, over to Waterford (Old Half Moon
point), another rich and flourishing village. Arrived
at Fish creek in Saratoga at half-past two p. M.
through a beautiful, well cultivated interval of allu-
vial land on the west side of the Hudson — every-
thing from Albany to this place wears the appearance
of wealth and comfort. Put up at Mr. Barker's
tavern. After dinner viewed the ruins of the British
fortifications and headquarters of Gen. Burgoyne.
He kept his quarters for several days at a house now
standing and in good repair, about a mile north of
Fish creek, on the west side of the road, owned by
Mr. Busher,* an intelligent farmer about seventy-five
years of age.f While Burgoyne held his headquar-

* Bushee.

f Now known as the " Marshall House"- -See pre-
vious note.

214 Samuel Woodruff's Visit.

ters at this house,* Baron Riedesel, of the royal
army, obtained leave of the commander-in-chief to
place his lady, the baroness, and their three small chil-
dren under the same protection ; these were also
accompanied by Lady Acland and some other ladies,
wives of British officers. At that time some of the
American troops were stationed on the east bank of
the Hudson, opposite the house, in fair view of it, and
within cannon shot distance. Observing considerable
moving of persons about the house, the Americans sup-
posed it the rendezvous of the British officers, and com-
menced a brisk cannonade upon it. Several shot struck
and shattered the house. The baroness, with her
children, fled into the cellar for safety, and placed
herself and them at the north-east corner, where they
were well protected by the cellar wall. A British
surgeon by the name of Jones, having his leg broken
by a cannon ball, was at this time brought in and
laid on the floor of the room which the baroness and
the other ladies had just left. A cannon ball entered
the house near the north-east corner of the room, a
few inches above the floor, and, passing through,
broke and mangled the other leg of the poor surgeon.
Soon after this he expired. Mr. Busher very civilly
conducted me into the room, cellar and other parts
of the house, pointing out the places where the balls
entered, etc. From hence I proceeded to and viewed

* A mistake — as Burgoynes headquarters were at
the Schuyler mansion.

Samuel Woodruff's Visit. 215

with very great interest the spot where Gen. Bur-
goyne, attended by his staff, presented his sword to
Gen. Gates ; also the ground on which the arms, etc.,
of the royal army were stacked and piled. This
memorable place is situated on the flat, north side of
Fish creek, about forty rods west of its entrance into
the Hudson, and through which the Champlain canal
now passes.

Contiguous to this spot is the north-west angle of
old Fort Hardy, a military work thrown up and oc-
cupied by the French, under Gen. Dieskau, in the
year 1755.* The lines of intrenchment embrace, as
I should judge, about fifteen acres of ground. The
outer works on the north side of Fish creek and east
on the west bank of the Hudson. Human bones,
fragments of fire-arms, swords, balls, tools, imple-
ments, broken crockery, etc., etc., are frequently
picked up on this ground. f

*A mistake — Fort Hardy having been erected
by the province of New York and named after Gov.
Hardy, then the colonial governor. Neither did
Dieskau ever get as far south as this. See my " Life
of Sir William Johnson."

f And not only here, but from this point south to
Stillwater, relics of the battles are often picked up.
Indeed, so late as 1877, the Saratogian for February
:5» J877, says: "Tradition says that 100 years ago
the coming summer a batteaux load of cannon balls
and bomb shells was unloaded upon the west shore
of the Hudson river at Stillwater, just above the

216 Samuel Woodruff's Visit.

In excavating the earth for the Champlain canal,
which passes a few rods west of this fort, such num-
bers of human skeletons were found as render it
highly probable this was the cemetery of the French
garrison.

About twenty or thirty rods west of the aqueduct
for the canal over Fish creek stood Gen. Schuyler's
mills, which were burned by order of Gen. Burgoyne.

Gen. Schuyler's dwelling-house, also, and his other
buildings, standing on a beautiful area a little south-
east of the mills on the south side of the creek, suf-
fered the same fate. The mills have been rebuilt
and are now in operation at the same place where
the former stood. The grandson of Gen. Schuyler

rapids and in the rear of Stephen Bradt's dwelling.
The object was to cart the munitions of war around
the rapids, where the boat would again be reloaded.
Gen. Burgoyne and his army were brought to a stand
farther north, however, and the shells were never re-
shipped. High water, with its masses of floating
debris, soon hid from sight the deadly missiles. De-
cade after decade passed away, and the location of
the balls was unknown until twenty seven years ago,
when one was found protruding above the surface.
Bradt began an excavation and found over 200 bomb
shells of different sizes, which he distributed to all his
neighbors as Revolutionary relics. Many of them
are still in possession of farmers in the vicinity of
Stillwater, and a collection will be made to place on
exhibition at the Centennial. A few of the balls were
evidently captured from the British, as they bear the
stamp of the lion's claw."

Samuel Woodruff's Visit. 217

now lives in a house erected on the site of the former
dwelling of his father — a covered bridge across the
creek adjoining the mills.

I cannot in this place omit some short notices of
Gen. P. Schuyler. It seems he was commander-in-
chief of the northern army until the latter part of
August, 1777, at which time he was superseded by
Gen. Gates.

I remember at that time there was some excite-
ment in the public mind and much dissatisfaction ex-
pressed on account of -that measure; and with my
limited means of knowledge I have never been able
to learn what good reason induced his removal. Few
men in our country at that time ranked higher than
Gen. Schuyler in all the essential qualities of the
patriot, the gentleman, the soldier and scholar. True
to the cause of liberty, he made sacrifices which few
were either able or willing to bear. The nobility of
soul he possessed distinguished him from ordinary
men, and pointed him out as one deserving public
confidence.

At the surrender of the royal army he generously
invited Gen. Burgoyne, his suite and several of the
principal officers, with their ladies, to his house at
Albany, where, at his own expense, he fed and lodged
them for two or three weeks with the kindest hos-
pitality.

This is the man who, a few days before, had suf-
fered immense loss in his mills and other buildings
28

218 Samuel Woodruff's Visit.

at Fish creek, burned by order of the same Bur-
goyne who had now become his guest.

Respecting Gen. Gates I will only ^^.j finis coronal
opus.

Oct. 1 8th. At 7 A. M., started on foot to view
some other and equally interesting places connected
with the campaign of 1777. Three miles and a half
south of Fish creek called at the house of a Mr.
Smith, in which Gen. Fraser died of wounds received
in the battle of the 7th of October, and near which
house, in one of the British redoubts, that officer was
buried. This house then stood by the road on the
west margin of the intervale, at the foot of the rising
ground. A turnpike road having since been con-
structed, running twenty or thirty rods east of the
old road, the latter has been discontinued, and Mr.
Smith has drawn the house and placed it on the west
side of the turnpike.

Waiving, for the present, any farther notices of
this spot, 1 shall attempt a concise narrative of the
two hostile armies for a short period anterior to the
great battle of the 7th of October.

The object of the British general was to penetrate
as far as Albany, at which place, by concert, he was to
meet Sir Henry Clinton, then with a fleet and army
lying at New York. In the early part of September
Gen. Burgoyne had advanced with his army from
Fort Edward and crossed the Hudson with his artil-
lery, baggage wagons, etc., on a bridge of boats, and
intrenched the troops on the highlands in Saratoga.

Samuel Woodruff's Visit. 219

On the i Qth of September they left their intrench-
ments, and moved south by a slow and cautious
march toward the American camp, which was secured
by a line of intrenchments and redoubts on Bemis's
heights, running from west to east, about half a mile
in length, terminating at the east end on the west
side of the intervale.

Upon the approach of the royal army, the Ameri-
can forces sallied forth from their camp, and met the
British about a mile north of the American lines.
A severe conflict ensued, and many brave officers
and men fell on both sides. The ground on which
this battle was fought was principally covered with
standing wood, This circumstance somewhat embar-
rassed the British troops in the use of their field
artillery, and afforded some advantage to the Ameri-
cans, particularly the riflemen under the command of
the brave Col. Morgan, who did great execution.
Night, which has so often and so kindly interposed
to stop the carnage of conflicting hosts, put an end
to the battle. Neither party claimed a victory. The
royal army withdrew in the night, leaving the field
and their slain, with some of their wounded, in pos-
session of the Americans. The loss of killed and
wounded, as near as could be ascertained, was, on
the part of the British, 600; and on that of the
Americans, about 350. The bravery and firmness of
the American forces displayed this day, convinced
the British officers of the difficulty, if not utter im-
possibility of continuing their march to Albany. The

220 Samuel Woodruff's Visit.

season for closing the campaign in that northern re-
gion was advancing — the American army was daily
augmenting by militia, volunteers, and the " two
months men," as they were then called. The fear
that the royal armies might effect their junction at
Albany, aroused the neighboring States of New
England, and drew from New Hampshire, Massa-
chusetts, Connecticut, and Vermont a large body of
determined soldiers. Baum's defeat at Bennington
had inspired them with new hopes and invigorated
their spirits.

Under these circumstances, inauspicious to the
hostile army, the British commander-in-chief sum-
moned a council of war ; the result of which was to
attempt a retreat across the Hudson to Fort Ed-
ward.* Gen. Gates, apprehending the probability of

*That a retreat, even before the expedition of
Burgoyne started, had been among the possibilities
is shown by the fact that on his advance Riedesel
buried some boats at Fort Edward to be utilized
should the army be forced to retreat. See my Life
of Gen. Riedesel. As this work, however, is now
very scarce, the following extract from the Remem-
brances of Public Events, 1774-1783, / 8-48, is here
given : " Burgoyne's further retreat had been cut off
by the loss of his battery. To secure them without
leaving a guard he had buried them at Fort Edward
and marked the place with little board head-stones,
on one of which was inscribed, ' Here lies the body
of such an one, etc.,' as if it had been the burying
place of his soldiers. When the Americans came

Samuel Woodruff's Visit. 22 1

this measure, seasonably detached a portion of his
force to intercept and cut off the retreat, should that
be attempted.

Many new and unexpected difficulties now pre-
sented themselves. The boats which had served the
British army for a bridge, being considered by them
as of no further use, had been cut loose, and most
of them floated down the river. The construction
of rafts sufficient for conveying over their artil-
lery and heavy baggage, would be attended with
great danger as well as loss of time. The bridges
over the creeks had been destroyed ; great quantities
of trees had been felled across the roads by order
of the American general ; another thing, not of
the most trifling nature, Fort Edward was already in
possession of the Americans. In this perplexing
dilemma the royal army found themselves completely
checkmated. A retreat, however, was attempted, but
soon abandoned. Situated as they now were, between
two fires, every motion they made was fraught with
danger and loss. They retired to their old intrenched
camp.

Several days elapsed without any very active ope-
rations on either side. This interval of time was,
however, improved by the royal army in preparations
to make one desperate effort to force the line of the

to the spot and examined it, they discovered the
stratagem, and the battery had a general and joyful
resurrection. Gordon, also, mentions this discovery.

222 Samuel Woodruff* s Visit.

American camp, and cut their way through on their
march to Albany. The American army improved
the meantime in strengthening their outer works, ar-
ranging their forces and placing the Continentals on
the north side of the intrenchments, where valiant
men were expected, thus preparing to defend every
point of attack ; Morgan, with his riflemen, to form
the left flank in the woods.

During these few days of "dreadful preparation,"
information daily arrived, by deserters and other-
wise, that an attack would soon be made upon the
line of our intrenchments at Bemis's Heights, near the
headquarters of Gen. Gates.

The expected conflict awakened great anxiety
among the American troops, but abated nothing of
that sterling intrepidity and firmness which they had
uniformly displayed in the hour of danger; all con-
sidered that the expected conflict would be decisive
of the campaign, at least, if not of the war in which
we had been so long engaged. Immense interests
were at stake. Should Gen. Burgoyne succeed in
marching his army to Albany, Gen. Clinton, without
any considerable difficulty, would there join him with
another powerful English army and a fleet sufficient
to command the Hudson from thence to New York.
Should this juncture of force take place all the States
east of the Hudson would be cut off from all efficient
communication with the western and southern States.

In addition to this there were other considerations
of the deepest concern. The war had already been

Samuel Woodruff's Visit. 223

protracted to a greater length of time than was ex-
pected on either side at the commencement. The
resources of the country, which were at first but com-
paratively small in respect to those things necessary
for war, began to fail ; the term of enlistment of many
of the soldiers had expired.

We had no public money, and no government to
guaranty the payment of wages to the officers and
soldiers, nor to those who furnished supplies for the
troops.

Under these discouraging circumstances it became
extremely difficult to raise recruits for the army.
During the year 1776 and the fore part of '77 the
Americans suffered greatly by sickness and were un-
successful in almost every recontre with the enemy.
Men's hearts, even the stoutest, began to fail. This
was, indeed, the most gloomy period of the war of
the Revolution.

On the 7th of October, about ten o'clock A. M., the
royal army commenced their march and formed their
line of battle on our left, near Bemis's Heights, with
Gen. Fraser at their head. Our pickets were driven
in about one o'clock p. M., and were followed by the
British troops on a quick march to within fair musket
shot distance of the line of our intrenchments. At
this moment commenced a tremendous discharge of
cannon and musketry, which was returned with equal
spirit by the Americans.

For thirty or forty minutes the struggle at the
breastworks was maintained with great obstinacy.

224 Samuel Woodruff's Visit.

Several charges with fixed bayonets were made by
the English grenadiers with but little effect. Great
numbers fell on both sides. The ardor of this bloody
conflict continued for some time without any apparent
advantage gained by either party. At length, how-
ever, the assailants began to give way, preserving
good order in a regular but slow retreat — loading,
wheeling and firing with considerable effect. The
Americans followed up the advantage they had
gained by a brisk and well-directed fire of field-
pieces and musketry. Col. Morgan, with his rifle-
men, hung upon the left wing of the retreating enemy,
and galled them with a most destructive fire. The
line of battle now became extensive, and most of the
troops of both armies were brought into action. The
principal part of the ground on which this hard day's
work was done is known by the name of Freeman's
farm. It was then covered by a thin growth of
pitch-pine wood without underbrush, excepting one
lot of about six or eight acres, which had been
cleared and fenced. On this spot the British grena-
diers, under the command of the brave Major Ac-
land, made a stand and brought together some of their
field artillery; this little field soon became literally
" the field of blood." These grenadiers, the flower
of the royal army, unaccustomed to yield to any op-
posing force in a fair field, fought with that obstinate
spirit which borders on madness. Acland received
a ball through both legs which rendered him unable
to walk or stand. This occurrence hastened the re-

Samuel Woodruff's Visit. 225

treat of the grenadiers, leaving the ground thickly
strewed with their dead and wounded.

The battle was continued by a brisk running fire
until dark. The victory was complete, leaving the
Americans masters of the field. Thus ended a battle
of the highest importance in its consequences, and
which added great lustre to the American arms. I
have seen no official account of the numbers killed
and wounded, but the loss on the part of British must
have been great, and on the part of the Americans
not inconsiderable. The loss of general officers suf-
fered by the royal army was peculiarly severe. But
to return to the Smith house. I made known to the
Smith family the object of my calling upon them,
found them polite and intelligent, and learned from
them many interesting particulars respecting the
battle of the /th of October. For several days pre-
vious to that time Gen. Burgoyne had made that
house his headquarters, accompanied by several gene-
ral officers and their ladies, among whom was Gen.
Eraser, the Baron and Baroness Riedesel, and their
children.

The circumstances attending the fall of this gallant
officer have presented a question about which mili-
tary men are divided in opinion. The facts seem to
be agreed that, soon after the commencement of the
action, Gen. Arnold, knowing the military character
and efficiency of Gen. Fraser, and observing his mo-
tions in leading and conducting the attack, said to
Col. Morgan, "that officer upon a grey horse is of
29

226 Sarmiel Woodruff's Visit.

himself a host, and must be disposed of. Direct the
attention of some of the sharpshooters among your
riflemen to him." Morgan, nodding his assent to
Arnold, repaired to his riflemen, and made known to
them the hint given by Arnold. Immediately upon
this the crupper of the grey horse was cut off by a
rifle bullet, and within the next minute another
passed through the horse's mane, a little back of his
ears. An aid of Eraser noticing this, observed to
him, "Sir, it is evident that you are marked out for
particular aim ; would it not be prudent for you to
retire from this place ?" Eraser replied, u my duty
forbids me to to fly from danger ;" and immediately
received a bullet through his body. A few grena-
diers were detached to carry him to the Smith house.
Having introduced the name of Arnold, it may be
proper to note here that although he had no regular
command that day, he volunteered his services, was
early on the ground and in the hottest part of the
struggle at the redoubts. He behaved (as I then
thought), more like a madman than a cool and dis-
creet officer. Mounted on a brown horse, he moved
incessantly at a full gallop back and forth, until he
received a wound in his leg, and his horse was shot
under him.* I happened to be near him when he fell,

f The Magazine of American History for May,
1879, contains the following, which may explain the
cause of Arnold's actions.

"ARNOLD AT SARATOGA. — In the battle of the ;th
of October, 1777, which practically decided the fate

Samuel Woodruff's Visit. 227

and assisted in getting him into a litter to be carried
to headquarters.

of Burgoyne's expedition, General Benedict Arnold
is represented as galloping about the field like one
beside himself, leading the troops to the charge with
reckless daring, and even unconsciously dealing
blows on those about him.

" Wilkinson attributed his conduct to intoxication,
but Major Armstrong, who assisted in removing
Arnold, wounded, from the field, saw no signs of
that. Other methods for accounting for his fren-
zied behavior have been suggested, but no evidence
bearing on the question has heretofore been pro-
duced that I am aware of. In the 'History of
the town of Northwood,' New Hampshire, just pub-
lished, I find some testimony which may aid us in
solving the problem.

" Dr. Edmund Chadwick, of Deerfield, N. H., was,
in October, 1777, acting as surgeon of Col. Scam-
mell's regiment, and was present at the battle in
question. He related that during the action, while
he was engaged in his professional duties in rear of
the American troops, a hogshead of rum stood near
him, the upper head of which was removed for the
convenience of serving the contents to the men ;
that Arnold rode up in hot haste, saying, 'Give me
a dipperful of that rum.' It was handed him ; he
drank the whole, wheeled his horse, and dashed into
the fight.

"The term 'dipperful' is rather vague, but very
diminutive vessels would be out of place in the army,
and it would be a small dipper, probably, which con-
tained less than a pint. It may be added that Dr.

228 Samuel Woodruff's Visit.

Late in the evening Gen. Burgoyne came in, and a
tender scene took place between him and Eraser.

Chadwick was well known to be a gentleman of char-
acter and respectability.

" With regard to the statement of Armstrong, it
may be said that a shock sometimes instantly sobers
the most intoxicated person. Arnold had been
severely wounded, and had his horse shot under him
before he was taken from the field.

"Exeter, N. H.— .B"

One is reminded, by this anecdote, of a story re-
lated of President Lincoln, who, on being told that
a certain successful general drank great quantities of
whisky, asked his informant for the particular brand
the orficer used — saying he would order it for some
other of his generals !

Although not, perhaps, germaine to the present
work, yet for the benefit of those of my subscribers
who are Free-masons, I would say (notwithstanding
much discussion on the subject) that Arnold was a
Free-mason. In the book for visitors, kept by " Solo-
mon's Lodge," at Poughkeepsie, during the Revo-
lutionary War, appears the signatures, the same
evening, of Benedict Arnold and Sir John Johnson,
the latter the last Provincial Grand Master of New
York. Across the signature of Arnold some one has
drawn a line — in accordance with a resolution of
that lodge, after his treason, that his name should be
erased from its books, This book containing these
interesting signatures is now (1895) among the
archives of the Masonic Temple in New York city.
Mr. Edward M. L. Ehlers, Grand Secretary, first
called my attention to this, which I have since verified
by a personal inspection of the book.

Samuel Woodruff's Visit. 229

Gen. Eraser was the idol of the British army, and
the officer on whom, of all others, Burgoyne placed
the greatest reliance. He languished through the
whole night and expired at eight o'clock the next
morning. While on his death-bed he advised Bur-
goyne, without delay, to propose to Gen. Gates terms
of capitulation, and prevent the further effusion of
blood ; that the situation of his army was now hope-
less ; they could neither advance nor retreat. He
also requested that he might be buried in the Great
redoubt — his body to be borne thither between sun-
set and dark, by a body of the grenadiers, without
parade or ceremony. This request was strictly com-
plied with.

After viewing the house to my satisfaction I
walked up to the place of interment. It is situated
on an elevated piece of ground commanding an ex-
tensive view of the Hudson, and a great length of
the beautiful interval on each side of it. I was
alone ; the weather was calm and serene. Reflec-
tions were awakened in my mind which I am wholly
unable to describe. Instead of the bustle and hum
of the camp, and confused noise of the battle of the
warrior, and the shouts of victory which I here wit-
nessed fifty years ago, all was now silent as the
abodes of the dead. And, indeed, far, far the great-
est part of both those armies who were then in active
life at and near this spot, are now mouldering in
their graves like that valiant officer whose remains
are under my feet — " their memories and their

230 Samuel Woodruff's Visit.

names lost," while God, in his merciful Providence,
has preserved my life, and after the lapse of half a cen-
tury has afforded me an opportunity of once more
viewing those places which force upon my mind many
interesting recollections of my youthful days.*

* In connection with these battles there are three
items which may appropriately here receive notice.
The first is taken from the Saratoga county Standard
for July 26, 1876 : " Mrs. Elizabeth Gleason, of Still-
water, was born in Easton, opposite Bemis's Heights,
October 7, 1777, during the hours that the decisive
struggle was being fought. Her father, Thomas
Lawson, was engaged in the battle in Col. Yates'
Schaghticoke regiment. Nearly all of her century
of life has been passed in the vicinity of Bemis's
Heights, living with her husband, Wm. Gleason,
either on a farm at the " Huddle," or on another near
the famous "Tory Hill" She yet retains a vivid
recollection of the early days, and is well preserved
in bodily health. She lives with her daughter, Mrs.
Charlotte Hoskins, in the village of Stillwater. The
second is, that the celebrated " Baron Munchhausen,"
the author of the " Adventures," was long believed
to be only a nom de plume, and a parody on the
14 Travels of Baron de Tott," or on Bruce's " Travels
in Abyssinia," and that in " the Gentleman s Maga-
zine for January, 1857, it is satisfactorily (?) made out
that ' Miinchhausen's Travels' were written at Dal-
coath Mine, in Cornwall, England, by a Mr. Raspe, a
German, who was store-keeper of that establish-
ment. The true history of Baron Munchhausen,
however, is as follows : Munchhausen was one of
the Brunswickers who served under General Riedesel

Samuel Woodruff's Visit. 231

Oct. i Qth. On my return down the river from
Albany to New York, in the steamboat " North
America," I had leisure and opportunity for reflect-

against us in the Revolutionary war. At the time of
Burgoyne's surrender, Munchhausen lost a leg while
defending " the great redoubt" against the spirited
attack of General Arnold. After the war he returned
to his native city, Brunswick, and lived there until
death, which occurred about the year 1804. Being
incapacitated for any active employment, Munch-
hausen amused himself by writing those marvellous
stories for children, which have, in Germany at least,
become classic. I have myself stood over his grave,
in Brunswick, in company with Registrator Sack (of
the Brunswick Civil Court), who was personally ac-
quainted with Miinchhausen, and who is also my au-
thority for the statement that the Munchhausen who
was wounded in the redoubt is identical with the au-
thor of the " Adventures."

The third, is in regard to the national flag of the
United States. A great deal of misapprehension ex-
ists about the date when it was first flung to the
breeze. Thus, a writer in the Saratogian for August
26, 1880, says: " The growth of the American flag
was a gradual thing, and anything in connection with
it interesting. Bunker Hill was fought without a
flag. The flag displayed by Putnam, on Prospect
Hill, was red, with the motto ' An appeal to
Heaven.' The thirteen stripes were employed to
represent the colonies on the flag first raised by
Washington at Cambridge, January 2, 1776. It was
called the 'grand union' flag. On June 14, 1777,
Congress resolved * that the flag of the thirteen
United States be thirteen stripes, alternate red

232 Samuel Woodruff's Visit.

ing upon the immense wealth and resources of the
State of New York — greater, I believe, at this time
than that of any other two States in the Union. It

and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white
in a blue field, representing a new constellation.'
This flag was, it is claimed, first unfolded by
Paul Jones on the Ranger on the day of the adop-
tion of the resolution. Various claims have been
made to the honor of first unfolding the flag, but
we think that the above is authority. The Rome
Sentinel publishes the following in relation to the
subject, thus recording another claim which, it will
be seen, puts the date subsequent to the date on
which Paul Jones is said to have flung the flag to
the breeze : Not long since a correspondent of the
New York Mail gave an interesting account of the
history of the United States flag, in which account
was stated that the first stars and stripes ever flung
to the breeze were unfurled in the battle of Sara-
toga, September 2, 1777. This is a mistake that
needs correcting : The honor of unfurling the first
star spangled banner belongs to the garrison of Fort
Stanwix, the site of which fort is now the site of
Rome. From Pomroy Jones' 'Annals of Oneida
County,' we glean that, at the beginning of the siege
of Fort Stanwix, August 3, 1777, Colonel Ganse-
voort's garrison was without a flag. Military pride,
indeed, every sense of propriety, would not allow
them to dispense with an appendage so proper to a
beleaguered fortress. Necessity being the mother
of invention, shirts were cut up to form the white
stripes, bits of scarlet cloth were joined for the red,
and the blue ground, for the stars, was composed of
a camlet cloak furnished by Capt. Abraham Swart-

Samuel Woodruff's Visit. 233

would be hazarding nothing to say that this single
State possesses more physical power, and more of the
" sinews of war," than were employed by the whole
thirteen States through the war of the Revolution.
This, among other considerations, led me to the re-
flection how honorable it would be to the State, and
how deserving of the occasion, that a monument be

wout, of Poughkeepsie, an officer of the garrison.
This same camlet cloak was taken from a detach-
ment of the British, at Peekskill, by Col. Marinus
Willett, in the spring of 1776, he being then in com-
mand of the Third New York Regiment, to which
Capt. Swartwout belonged. There is glory in the
flag of our Union ; and the honor of first unfurling
it to the breeze belongs to the gallant garrison of
Fort Stanwix, which fought under that flag on the
6th of August, 1777, a day the events of which con-
tributed more to the independence of the United
States than is generally understood."

The fact is, however, that while it is true that a
flag intended for the stars and stripes, and made out
of a white shirt and some bits of red cloth from the
petticoat of a soldier's wife, first floated on captured
standards on the ramparts of Fort Stanwix (the
present site of Rome), August 5, 1777 ; yet the stars
and stripes as we now see them — except as to the
number of stars — was first unfurled to grace the sur-
render at Saratoga, October 1 7, 1 777. The Fort Stan-
wix flag is now in the possession of Mrs. Abraham
Lansing, of Albany, a descendant of General Ganse-
voort, by whom it is cherished as a most precious
relic.

30

234 Samuel Woodruff's Visit.

erected at or near the place where the royal army
surrendered by capitulation on the i 7th of October,
1777, in commemoration of an event so important
in our national history. The battle of the 7th of
October may be considered, in its effects and conse-
quences, as the termination of the war, with as much
propriety as that of Bunker's Hill was the commence-
ment of it.

I am, sir, very respectfully yours,

SAMUEL WOODRUFF.
WILLIAM L. STONE, ESQ.

VISIT OF JAMES STUART, AN ENGLISH TRAV-
ELER, IN THE AUTUMN OF 1828.*

The field of Gen. Burgoyne's chief battles and of
his surrender is on the Hudson, about ten or twelve
miles from Saratoga Springs. Most people devote
a day to survey it. On the 27th of October we hired
a conveyance from Mr. Samuel Burtis at Saratoga
Springs, who is a most useful and obliging person,
as horse and carriage hirer, and setting off early in
the morning, spent most of the day on those parts
of the banks of the Hudson, rendered memorable by
the disasters, sufferings and, ultimately, by the sur-
render of a great British army, which, in its conse-

* James Stuart was born in Duncarn, Fifeshire,
Scotland, in 1776, and died at his residence at Nott-
inghill, London, Eng., on the 3d of November, 1849.
He was the son of Charles Stuart, who was descended
from the third Earl of Moray. Being an ardent sup-
porter of the Whigs, the Tories heaped all sorts of
abuse on him. Discovering that Sir Alexander Bos-
well, Bart., the eldest son of Dr. Johnson's biographer,
was one of his chief, traducers, Stuart called on him
to apologize for a pasquinade which he had written
in a Glasgow newspaper. Upon Boswell refusing to
do so Stuart challenged him to a duel, which was

236 Visit of James Stuart.

quences, led to the separation of the American colo-
nies from Great Britain. * * * Circumstantial
details of these battles have been published * *
which make it not very difficult to understand on the

fought near Auchtertool, in Fife, on the 26th of
March, 1822, where Sir Alexander Boswell was mor-
tally wounded. Stuart was tried in consequence for
murder, but acquitted, his conduct on the occasion of
the duel being proved to have been highly creditable.
The expenses of his trial, however, and unfortunate
speculations, caused him to retreat to the United
States. After his return to Scotland he obtained a
discharge from his creditors and published an account
of his travels in the United States in 1828, under the
title of " Three Years in North America," from which
his " Visit to the Saratoga Battle Grounds " is taken.
This work, calling forth several adverse criticisms
from those of the English reviews that were un-
friendly to republican institutions, elicited a reply
from him in a work entitled, " Refutations of Asper-
sions on Stuart's Three Years in North America,"
London, 1834. He edited for several years the Lon-
don Courier. The violent partisan attitude he as-
sumed in politics called forth chastisement frequently
in the pages of Blackwood, especially from John
Wilson in his Noctes Ambrosiance, where he figures
under the name of " Stot " (anglice " Steer "). Stuart
was noted for his taste in art and his social quali-
ties, although his adherence to principles often led
him into serious difficulties. His account of his
visit to the Saratoga battle grounds is admirable,
especially his description of their topographical fea-
tures.

Visit of James Stuart, 237

spot, — Bemis's Heights and Freeman's Farm, which
we visited — the relative positions of the armies, even
without the assistance of Mr. Ezra Buel, whom
we saw, now a very old man, who was the guide of
the American army, and wounded in one of these
battles. * * * '

Anything like a history of this important, though
short, campaign would be out of place here — my ob-
ject merely being to give such information as may
prevent travelers from passing through this part of the
country without being aware of the interest attached
to it, or knowing how easy it is to having pointed out
to them, in the course of a few hours, and still with
perfect precision, some of the leading circumstances
of the greatest military event which has occurred in
America — the stations of the opposing armies -
the houses which were the headquarters on each
side — the spots where Gen. Fraser and some of the
most eminent officers were killed — where Fraser
was buried — and the field in which were piled the
arms and stores of the capitulating army.

In the battle of the iQth, Gen. Burgoyne himself
was aimed at, but the aide-de camp of Gen. Phillips
received the ball through his arm while delivering a
message to Burgoyne, the mistake being occasioned
by his having his saddle trappings of rich lace, which
induced the marksman to suppose him the com-
mander. * * * The spot where Gen. Fraser was
wounded in the battle of the 7th of October, is in a
meadow, close to a blacksmith shop, on a bit of ele-

238 Visit of James Stuart.

vated ground.* The place of his interment is now
hardly distinguishable ; no monument or tablet of
any kind has been erected over the grave of this
brave and meritorious officer. * * * f

We returned from the battle grounds to the coun-
try hotel [the tavern at Stillwater], about half a mile
from the house where the Baroness de Riedesel spent
the miserably anxious day (the 7th of October,
1777,) very ready for the dinner set out for us, beef-
steaks, potatoes, vegetables, and apple pie. In pass-
ing through the ante-room, on our way to dinner, we
saw another edition of precisely the same dinner
placed in it for our driver. This is an example, and
one of the most common, every day kind, of the
equality existing in this country. The drivers not
unfrequently dine at the stage hotels with the pas-
sengers; but they would not submit to have an in-
ferior dinner, nor one served up after the others.
All pay, and, if industrious and sober, are able to
pay alike.

*This spot, where yet (1894) stands the stump of
the original tree under which Fraser was shot, is now
marked by a tablet, placed there by the exertions of
Mrs. E. H. Walworth, the indefatigable trustee of the
Saratoga Monument Association. The blacksmith
shop here referred to, and which now belongs to
Walker, and which is mentioned in Gen. Hoyt's letter
(See ante}, has long since been torn down.—

f Mrs. Walworth has also had erected a tablet
marking the spot where Fraser is buried.

VISIT OF GENERAL EBENEZER MATTOON IN

1835.*

AMHERST, MASS., Oct. 7, 1835.

PHILIP SCHUYLER, ESQ., — Sir: Yours of the i7th
tilt., requesting me to give you a detailed account of
what I recollect of the battle of Saratoga, surrender
of Gen. Burgoyne, etc., was duly received.

When I left home on a visit to my friend Frost,
at Union Village, it was my intention to have visited
the ground on which the army of Gen. Burgoyne was
met and compelled to surrender. But the absence of
Mr. Frost prevented. Had I known, however, that
a descendant of that venerable patriot and distin-
guished commander, Gen. Schuyler, was living on
the ground, I should have procured means to pay him
my respects.

* For this valuable letter from the Saratoga Senti-
nel of November 10, 1835, I am indebted to the
courtesy of my friend, the late Mr. Lyman C.
Draper, of Madison, Wis., who first directed my at-
tention to it.

Ebenezer Mattoon was born at Amherst, Mass.,
August 19, 1/55, and died there September 17, 1843.
The son of a farmer, he graduated at Dartmouth
College in 1 776, and then joined the artillery company

240 Visit of Ebenezer Mattoon.

Gen. Gates, indeed, obtained the honor of cap-
turing Burgoyne and his army ; but let me tell you,
sir, that it was more through the wise and prudent
counsels of your brave and distinguished ancestor,
and the energy and intrepidity of Generals Lincoln
and Arnold, than through the ability and foresight
of Gates.

In my narrative I shall confine myslf to what
transpired from the ;th to the i ;th day of October,
1777, both days included. This will necessarily lead
me to correct the statement of Gen. Wilkinson and
a Mr. Buel, in your neighborhood, respecting the fall
of Gen. Fraser. By confounding the two accounts
of the i Qth of September and 7th of October, neither
of them is correctly described.

The action of the iQth of September commenced
about ten o'clock A. M., and continued during the
day, each army alternately advancing and retiring.
On that day Col. Morgan posted a number of his
riflemen to take off the officers as they appeared out

at the battle of Saratoga, and left the service with
the rank of major. He was a delegate from Am-
herst to the conventions ; and was several times a
member of the Legislature. From 1797 to 1816
major-general 4th division ; adjutant-general of the
State, 1816; State Senator, 1795-6; twenty years
sheriff of Hampshire; M. C. 1801-3; and in 1820,
although blind, was a member of the State Constitu-
tional Convention. He commanded the A. and H.
artillery company in 1817. Gen. Mattoon was a
scientific farmer. — Drakes Biographical Dictionary.

Visit of Ebenezer Mat toon. 241

of the woods ; but no such posting of riflemen oc-
curred on the 7th of October, Gen. Wilkinson to the
contrary notwithstanding.

On the 7th of October the American army was
posted, their right wing resting on the North River,
and their left extending on to Bemis's Heights,
Generals Nixon and Glover* commanding on the

* Glover was from Marblehead, Mass., and a con-
temporary MS. journal thus speaks of his part in
this action: "Even the stolid Hessians expressed
their amazement when they saw these brave Marble-
headers dash through the fire of grape and canister
and over the dead bodies of their comrades, through
the embrasures, over the cannon, with the same
agility with which they formerly climbed to the main-
top, or traversed the backstays, bayoneting the can-
noneers at their posts. It was said that Morgan's
riflemen ran up the trees which commanded the
enemy's guns with the speed of catamounts.
Glover's troops evinced the coolness and agility of
sailors in their attack, and showed that they could
use the bayonet with as much skill and effect as the
marling or hand-spike on board ship.

" Till that hour the bete noir of our army was the
Hessian and his bayonet, with which he was ascribed
as having almost superhuman skill. That day he
was beaten with his own chosen weapon, and the les-
son he learned and we learned was an important fac-
tor in future contests. After one of the most des-
perate hand to hand contests ever known on this
planet, the redoubt [Breyman's] was taken, the guns
turned on the enemy, and the day was ours. Noth-
ing shows the fiery nature of this battle more dis-

242 Visit of Ebenezer Mattoon.

right ; Lincoln, the centre, and Morgan and Larnerd
the left.* The British army, with its left resting on
the river, commanded by Philips ; their centre by
Gen. Redhiesel,f and the extreme right extending to
the heights, was commanded by Lord Balcarras,J
where he was strongly fortified. Their light troops
were under the command of Gen. Eraser and Lord
Auckland [Acland].

tinctly than the fact that Gen. Glover that day had
three horses shot under him."

* " The position thus selected lay between the Hud-
son River on the east and Saratoga Lake only six
miles to the west ; the high lands west of the river
valley were cut by three deep ravines leading east-
erly, forming strong natural barriers against an ap-
proaching army ; the whole country in this vicinity
was a wilde'rness, and the high ground approaches so
near the river there that it was the most advantage-
ous point in the whole valley to dispute the passage
of the British army moving from the north. Such
was the place selected by the experienced Polish
patriot Kosciusko, and approved by Gen. Gates, as
the Thermopylae of the struggle for American free-
dom."— General E. F. Bullard's Centennial Address
at Schuylerville, July 4, 1876.

f Ried-esel, pronounced Re-day-zel, with accent on
second syllable. The Cockneys in the British army
pronounced it Red-hazel — whence Gen. Mattoon's
spelling of it is doubtless derived.

\ Balcarras, it may be remembered, was the officer
who got into a serious altercation with Arnold in
England — refusing to speak or recognize him.

Visit of Ebenezer Mattoon. 243

About one o'clock of this day two signal guns
were fired on the left of the British army, which in-
dicated a movement. Our troops were immediately
put under arms, and the lines manned. At this junc-
ture Gens. Lincoln and Arnold rode with great speed
towards the enemy's lines. While they were absent
the picket guards on both sides were engaged near
the river. In about half an hour Generals Lincoln
and Arnold returned to headquarters, where many of
the officers collected to hear the report, General Gates
standing at the door.

Gen. Lincoln says, " Gen. Gates, the firing at the
river is merely a feint ; their object is your left. A
strong force of 1,500 men are marching circuitously
to plant themselves on yonder height. That point
must be defended or your camp is in danger." Gates
replied, " I will send Morgan with his riflemen and
Dearborn's infantry."

Arnold says, "That is nothing; you must send a
strong force." Gates replied, " Gen. Arnold, I have
nothing for you to do ; you have no business here."
Arnold's reply was reproachful and severe.

Gen. Lincoln says, "You must send a strong force
to support Morgan and Dearborn, at least three
regiments."

Two regiments from Gen. Larned's brigade and
one from Gen. Nixon's were then ordered to that
station, and to defend it, at all hazards. Generals
Lincoln and Arnold immediately left the encampment
and proceeded to the enemy's lines.

244 Visit of Ebenezer Mat toon.

In a few minutes Capt. Furnival's company of ar-
tillery, in which I was lieutenant, was ordered to
march towards the fire, which had now opened upon
our picket in front, the picket consisting of about
300 men. While we were marching the whole line,
up to our picket or front, was engaged. We ad-
vanced to a height of ground which brought the
enemy in view, and opened our fire. But the
enemy's guns, eight in number, and much heavier
than ours, rendered our position untenable.

We then advanced into the line of infantry. Here
Lieutenant M'Lane joined me. In our front there
was a field of corn, in which the Hessians were
secreted. On our advancing towards the corn field a
number of men rose and fired upon us. M'Lane
was severely wounded. While I was removing him
from the field the firing still continued without
abatement.

During this time a tremendous firing was heard on
our left. We poured upon them our canister shot
as fast as possible, and the whole line, from left to
right, became engaged. The smoke was very dense
and no movements could be seen ; but as it soon
arose, our infantry appeared to be slowly retreating
and the Hessians slowly advancing, their officers urg-
ing them on with their hangers.

Just at this moment an elderly man, with a long
hunting gun, coming up I said to him, " Daddy, the
infantry mustn't leave, I shall be cut to pieces." He
replied, "I'll give them another gun." The smoke

Visit of Ebenezer Mattoon. 245

then rising again, several officers, led by a general,
appeared moving to the northward, in rear of the
Hessian line. The old man at that instant dis-
charged his gun and the general officer pitched for-
ward on the neck of his horse, and instantly they all
wheeled about, the old man observing, " I have killed
that officer, let him be who he will." I replied, "y°u
have, and it is a general officer, and by his dress I
believe it is Frazer." While they were turning
about three of their horses dropped down ; but
their further movements were then concealed by the
smoke.

Here I will offer the reasons why I think this offi-
cer was Gen. Fraser, and that he was killed by the
shot of this old man. In the first place, the distance,
by actual measurement, was within reach of a gun:
for the next morning, a dispute arising about the
distance, some contending that it was eight rods and
others fifteen, two respectable sergeants, both of whom
have since been generals in the militia of Massachu-
setts, Boardman and Lazell, were selected to decide
the dispute by pacing the ground. They did so, and
found the distance from the stump where the old
man stood to the spot where the horses fell just
twelve rods. In the next place the officer was shot
through the body from left to right as was afterwards
ascertained. Now from his relative position to the
posted riflemen, he could not have been shot through
in this direction, but they must have hit him in front.

246 Visit of Ebenezer Mattoon.

Moreover, the riflemen could not have seen him on
account of the smoke in which he was enveloped.*

The troops continuing warmly engaged, Col. John-
son's regiment coming up, threw in a heavy fire and
compelled the Hessians to retreat. Upon this we
advanced with a shout of victory. At the same time
Auckland's [Acland's] corps gave way.

We proceeded but a short distance before we came
upon four pieces of brass cannon, closely surrounded
with the dead and dying ; at a few yards further we
came upon two more. Advancing a little further we
were met by a fire from the British infantry, which
proved very fatal to one of Col. Johnson's com-
panies, in which were killed one sergeant, one cor-
poral, fourteen privates — and about twenty were
wounded.

They advanced with a quick step, firing as they
came on. We returned them a brisk fire of canister

* There can be no doubt that the old man, to whom
the writer alludes, shot an officer ; but that he killed
Gen. Fraser cannot be correct, since not only was
Murphy positive that he fell before his rifle, but seve-
ral authors have stated that Fraser told his friends
after he was wounded, " that he saw the man who
shot him, and that he was a rifleman posted in a
tree." See, also, Silliman's visit to the battleground
some pages back, where he speaks of Morgan having
told his friend, Hon. Richard Brent, to this effect,
and Simms' " Frontiersmen of New York," in which
this writer says that Murphy's son and two daugh-
ters assured him that their father shot Fraser.

Visit of Ebenezer Mat toon. 247

shot, not allowing ourselves time even to sponge our
pieces. In a short time they ceased firing and ad-
vanced upon us with trailed arms. At this juncture
Arnold came up with a part of Brooks's regiment
and gave them a most deadly fire, which soon caused
them to face about and retreat with a quicker step
than they advanced.

The firing had now principally ceased on our left,
but was brisk in front and on the right. At this mo-
ment Arnold says to Col. Brooks (late governor of
Massachusetts), " Let us attack Balcarras's works."
Brooks replied, "No. Lord Auckland's [Acland's]
detachment has retired there ; we can't carry them."
" Well, then, let us attack the Hessian lines."
Brooks replies, "with all my heart." We all wheeled
to the right and advanced. No fire was received,
except from the cannon, until we got within about
eight rods, when we received a tremendous fire from
the whole line. But a few of our men, however, fell.
Still advancing, we received a second fire, in which a
few men fell, and Gen. Arnold's horse fell under him
and he himself was wounded. He cried out, '' Rush
on, my brave boys." After receiving the third fire,
Brooks mounted their works, swung his sword, and
the men rushed into their works. When we entered
the works we found Col. Breyman dead, surrounded
with a number of his companions, dead or wounded.
We still pursued slowly ; the fire, in the meantime,
decreasing. Nightfall now put an end to this day's
bloody contest. During the day we had taken

248 Visit of Ebenezer Mat toon.

eight cannon and broken the centre of the enemy's
lines.

We were ordered to rest until relieved from the
camps. The gloom of the night, the groans and
shrieks of the wounded and dying, and the horrors
of the whole scene baffle all description.

Under cover of this night (the ;th) the British army
changed their position, so that it became necessary to
reconnoitre on the ground.* While Gen. Lincoln
was doing this he was severely wounded, so that his
active services were lost to the army during that
campaign. A powerful rain commenced about
1 1 o'clock, which continued without abatement till
the morning of the Qth. In this time information
had come that Gen. Burgoyne had removed his
troops to Saratoga. At 9 o'clock A. M. of October
8th Captain Furnival received orders to march to the
river, to cross the floating bridge and repair to the
fording place, opposite Saratoga, where we arrived
at dusk. There we found Gen. Bailey, of New

* During a retreat a Mr. Willard, as before stated
in the preface, residing near the foot of a moun-
tain, opposite the battle ground, by night would dis-
play signals from its top by different lights, in such
manner as from time to time to give the Americans
the location and movements of the British army.
This mountain is plainly visible from Albany and
Fort Edward. It has ever since been known by the
name of " Willard's mountain." That is certainly
one of the earliest systems of telegraphing known
to have been put in practice.

Visit of Ebenezer Mattoon. 249

Hampshire, with about 900 men, arranging a long
range of fires, to indicate the presence of a large
army. The British troops had covered the opposite
heights with their fires.

In the early part of the evening Col. Moseley ar-
rived with his regiment of Massachusetts militia,
when our company was directed by Gen. Bailey to
make a show of our field pieces at the river. We
soon extinguished their lights. Then we were or-
dered to pass the Battenkill river, and erect works
there during the night. In the morning we per-
ceived a number of officers on the stairs, and on the
east side of the house on the hill, a little north of
the Battenkill river, apparently surveying our situa-
tion and works.

My captain being sick at the time I levelled our
guns, and with such effect as to disperse them. We
took the house to be their headquarters.* We con-

* This was the house, an account of which is men-
tioned in a previous note in which Mrs. Riedesel was
stationed.

In this house was born March 15, 1794, a lady who
died at Painted Post, N. Y., April 23, 1894. The
lady's name was Mrs. Anna Patterson Goodsell
Smith. Her father, Capt. Sherman Patterson, served
in the Continental army under Gen. Swift, participated
in the storming of Quebec, and was close by Mont-
gomery's side when the latter fell in that desperate
assault. She was twice married, the first time at six-
teen, and was the mother of eight children, five of
whom are now living. There are also living thirty-
two grandchildren and fourteen great grandchildren.
32

250 Visit of Ebenezer Mat toon.

tinued our fire till a nine or twelve pounder was
brought to bear upon us and rendered our works use-
less. Next we were ordered to repair, in haste, to
Fort Edward to defend the fording-place. Col.
Moseley's regiment accompanied us. Some slight
works were thrown up by us ; and while thus em-
ployed, a number of British officers appeared on the
opposite side of the river. We endeavored to salute
them according to their rank! They soon disappeared.

During this day (the loth) we captured fifty Indians
and a large number of Canadian tories. We re-
mained at Fort Edward till the morning of the I3th.
Being then informed of the armistice which had been
agreed upon, we were ordered to return to our posi-
tion upon the Battenkill and repair our works.
Here we remained till the morning of the i7th, when
we received orders to repair to Gen. Gates's head-
quarters on the west side of the river.

As we passed along we saw the British army piling
(not stacking) their arms ; the piles of arms extend-
ing from Schuyler's creek northward nearly to the
house on the hill before mentioned. The range of
piles ran along the ground west of the road then
traveled, and east of the canal as it now runs.

This incident is here mentioned as illustrating how
close to the present is the Revolutionary period, as I
have before remarked in a previous note. This
house has often been mistaken for Burgoyne's head-
quarters, a statement, also, I have elsewhere shown
to be incorrect.

Visit of Ebenezer Mattoon. 251

Just below the island we passed the river, and
came to Gen. Gates's marquee, situated on a level
piece of ground, from 130 to 150 rods south of
Schuyler's creek. A little south and west of this
there is a rising ground, on which our army was
posted, in order to appear to the best advantage.
A part of it was also advantageously drawn up upon
the east side of the river. About noon, on the i;th,
Gen. Burgoyne, with a number of his officers, rode
up near to the marquee, in front of which Gen.
Gates was sitting, attended with many of his offi-
cers. The sides of the marquee were rolled up, so
that all that was transacted might be seen. Gen.
Burgoyne dismounted and approached Gen. Gates,
who rose and stepped forward to meet him. Gen.
Burgoyne then delivered up his sword to Gen.
Gates, who received it in his left hand, at the same
time extending his right hand to take the right
hand of Gen. Burgoyne.*

* GEN. BURGOYNE'S SWORD STILL TO BE SEEN AT HAD-
LEY, MASS. — Hadley claims notice in connection with
the Saratoga celebration by virtue of certain valu-
able relics of Gen. Burgoyne and traditions of his visit.
After the surrender Burgoyne, with other paroled
prisoners, left Saratoga for Boston to take passage
for England. He was escorted by a band of Ameri-
can soldiers under command of Col. Elisha Porter,
of Hadley — a notable member of a notable family
in the early history of the Connecticut valley. The
successive heads of this family have all been more or

252 Visit of Ebenezer Mat toon.

After a few minutes' conversation Gen. Gates re-
turned the sword to Gen. Burgoyne, who received
it in the most graceful and gentlemanly manner.
The rest of Gen. Burgoyne's officers then delivered

less prominent in the affairs of the town and section,
and seats in the Legislature and other local official
positions have been heir-looms since the time of
Samuel Porter — the first male child born in the
town. Col. Porter was the son of Eleazar Porter
and brother of Judge Eleazar Porter, of the Court
of Common Pleas. At the outbreak of the Revolu-
tion he raised a regiment and commanded it during
the earlier part of the struggle, gaining distinction
from his high qualities, both in the field and in the
councils of his superior officers. Autograph letters
from Washington and other famous men are still
treasured by his descendants. To him was assigned
the task of piloting Burgoyne through the mountain
wilderness lying between the battle field and the sea,
and on arriving at Hadley he entertained the distin-
guished captive in his own mansion. This house
is one of the finest specimens of old colonial archi-
tecture to be found, and bears its 164 years more
lightly than many of its contemporaries. The room
occupied by Gen. Burgoyne during the night is a spa-
cious and elegant apartment on the lower floor,
looking out upon the expanse of the beautiful West
street, and shadowed by majestic elms. So much
was Burgoyne impressed by the kindness of his gen-
erous foe that, on departing, he presented Col. Porter
with his dress sword, which Gen. Gates had permit-
ted him to retain, and also left his camp bedstead and
the poles of his tent. The bedstead has, through

Visit of Ebenezer Mattoon. 253

up their swords, and had them restored to them like-
wise. They then all repaired to the table and were
seated ; and while dining, the prisoners were pass-
ing by.

some unknown chance, disappeared, but the remain-
ing articles are preserved and exhibited with pride
to curious visitors. The sword is one of the slender,
triangular rapiers which were indispensable features
in the dress of a gentleman of that day, but this is
of the elegant order befitting the dignity of an offi-
cer of high rank in his majesty's army. The hilt is
of solid silver, and the guard is constructed in elabo-
rate designs. The entire length of the blade is
inlaid with gold filagree work, and on the sides of
the base, near the hilt, are traced in the same metal
G. R. — Georgius Rex — and the arms of the British
kingdom. The numerous hacks and dents on the
sword's edge show that it was not merely a holiday
decoration. The point has been broken off, and pos-
sibly remains rusting in the scabbard, which is of
finest leather, ornamented with silver. The tent-
poles are of light yet strong wood, and are supplied
with joints, hooks and staples. A curious piece of
frame work, consisting of four flat sticks united at
one end to an iron spike, and joined near the other,
is supposed to have served as a support to a canopy
overhanging the general's head. Col. Porter's diary,
which he kept with great minuteness for many years,
closes abruptly at the end of the year 1776, and
thus the only knowledge of the history of these in-
teresting relics depends upon family tradition. —
Springfield Republican, August 20, 1886.

254 Visit of Ebenezer Mat toon.

After they had all passed by a number of us went
in search of a gun which was upon a carriage the
day previous to the 1 7th, near what was called the
Hessian burying ground. But the tracks of the car-
riage were so confused, and the stench from the dead
bodies was so offensive, that the search was discon-
tinued.*

* In speaking of the surrender, Benjamin Mooers,
a participant in the battle, in his diary says : " The
surrender of Gen. Burgoyne's sword and his army is
worth recording here, for it was a grand defeat to the
enemy. The soldiers were drawn up in line on each
side, red coats on one, and blue and buff Continen-
tals on the other [see " Revolutionary Letters " for
a fuller account of this]. I must say that of all the
brave fighters I ever saw Gen. Arnold was the best.
The odds being so great against him in the battle of
Bemis's Heights he remained undaunted, and until
his horse fell with him, crushing his leg so that he
had to be borne off from the field, he rushed like a
wild man wherever the battle was the hottest. I
would have liked to have heard the words used at
the surrender, but could not, and had to be satisfied
with seeing Burgoyne's sword given up. One part
of the prisoners was sent south, the others eastward
to the barracks built in 1775-76 for our troops near
Boston. They were under a guard of militia men,
to which the company I belonged was annexed, and
the entire guard and prisoners were placed under
the command of our captain, Gen. Bricket." All the
same, however, Gen. Glover, of Marblehead, was the
gentleman under whom the Convention troops were
escorted to Boston and Worcester, Mass.

Visit of Ebenezer Mattoon. 255

Thus I have replied to your inquiries, as far as my
recollection extends. I should be very happy to
meet you and spend a day or two in walking over
the battle ground, and entering into other particulars
concerning that engagement, which, however, are of
minor importance.

With much esteem,

E. MATTOON.

VISIT OF SIR JOHN BURGOYNE'S GRAND-
DAUGHTER TO THE BATTLE FIELD
OF SARATOGA IN 1879.

" Rev. James L. Spurgeon, brother of the famous
preacher of England, with his wife, arrived at Sara-
toga, Tuesday. Mrs. Spurgeon is a granddaughter
of Burgoyne, who capitulated at Saratoga in 1777,
and one object of their visit to Saratoga was to see
the historic battle ground. Wednesday they went
over it, having the good fortune to be accompanied
by Mr. William L. Stone, the historian of the Bur-
goyne campaign, who was staying at Saratoga. Mrs.
Spurgeon is the daughter of Sir John Burgoyne, dis-
tinguished in the Crimean war and a son of him
who surrendered to our arms a hundred years ago.
She was greatly pleased with her visit to the scene
of her ancestor's famous battle, and carried away
with her as a memento of the place an Indian arrow
head, found by Mr. Stone near the spot where Gen.
Burgoyne received three bullets, two of them enter-
ing his hat and one piercing his waistcoat. Mr.
Stone also presented her with a copy of his interest-
ing and complete monograph on the Burgoyne cam-
paign. Extract from the Saratoga Journal, Septem-
ber, 1879.

.

GEN. J. WATTS DE PEYSTER'S VISIT IN 1880.

Gen. de Peyster set out from Tivoli, Dutchess
County, N. Y., in August, 1880, in his carriage, to
visit Saratoga Springs and the battle grounds. After
leaving that village he continues as follows :

* * * After crossing the long toll-bridge over
Saratoga Lake, where it begins to contract, the coun-
try becomes very tame until, reaching the summit at
Bemis's Heights, whence it descends into the luxu-
riant valley of the Hudson. Between the lake and
the river, the road through Ketchum's Corners is, in
some places, little better than a track through the
woods, which is rather surprising for a route through
so old a country. Just as you commence to descend
to the river, an old willow tree in an open field indi-
cates the site of the headquarters of Gates and the
American hospitals during the series of battles which
has rendered this district memorable forever.

The battle ground proper is some two miles to the
north-north-west, and the conflict raged upon and
around a property then known as Freeman's Farm,
near the dwelling still owned by a proprietor of the
same name.

All the titles given to these battles, Stillwater,
Bemis's Heights, Saratoga, etc., except Freeman's
33

/• Watts de Peyster's Visit.

Farm, are misnomers. The fluctuations of the con-
test never flowed as far south as Bemis's Heights.
There Gates, as stated, had his headquarters, and
below these, to the east by south, was his bridge of
boats across the Hudson, to which, it is said, he
cast an anxious eye while Eraser was trying to turn
his left, and Arnold and Morgan were arresting
Eraser on the yth October. He even, for several
of the ensuing days, threw glances over his right
shoulder towards that bridge where Clinton, having
captured the key of the Highlands, could, by any dis-
play of energy, have appeared in the American rear
by the Qth, to co-operate with Burgoyne, who was
anxious to offer battle again to Gates on the 8th
October, 1777.

The Marquis de Chastellux, who visited the scenes
of the fighting in 1 780, three years after they oc-
curred— although piloted by those perfectly con-
versant with the locality — stated that it was very
difficult to recognize the different points of interest
even at that recent date. The country, it is true,
was all covered with woods, but then the woods were
still exactly the same as when Burgoyne and Balcar-
ras, Riedesel and Breyman, Eraser and Acland en-
countered Arnold, who was the hero of both days,
1 9th September and 7th October, for which Gates
got the credit.

The British officer, in whom centres the interest of
the 7th October battle, was Eraser. Bancroft, who
seems to have no sympathy with magnanimity of

J. Watts de Peysters Visit. 259

spirit, indulges in a word-flourish of triumph over the
fall of this brave Scotchman, which, in its cold-
blooded exultation, is not manly. It is sad to think
that Fraser did not fall in fair fight, but was picked
off by a rifleman especially detailed by Morgan for
the murderous purpose. Such a homicide is con-
sidered all fair in war, but to say the least of it, it is
savagery.

The aide-de-camp into whose arms Fraser fell from
his horse when mortally wounded was Capt. Bibby,
who afterward married a rich lady of New York, a
relation of the writer's ancestors, and settled in that
city. He was the head of a family who were remark-
able for their musical gifts inherited from their
common ancestor. He was a noted performer on the
violin, as well as a vocalist. To such an extent was
he proficient that it is especially alluded to in the
records of the Convention troops, held prisoners for
so many dreary years by Congress, in violation of
the articles of their surrender.

From the location of Gates's headquarters the
road follows the line of the Whitehall canal along
the western bank of the Hudson some ten miles to
Schuylerville, the scene of Burgoyne's surrender,
the " Field of the Grounded Arms." The Hudson
is a noble stream between Stillwater and the town
above mentioned, flowing calm, and full some thou-
sand feet across for nearly twenty miles from Still-
water to Fort Miller. The former place takes its
name from this long extent of still-water, uninter-

260 J. Watts de Peysters Visit.

rupted by rapids — one noble sheet unobstructed for
nearly thirteen miles by islands or any other obstacle.
If such it is, over 150 miles from its mouth, it is no
wonder that the Aborigines and original settlers
recognized it as uthe Great River of the North," or
" the Great River of the Mountains," for it issues
from the Adirondacks, flows in sight of the Green
Mountains, and cleaves its way through two succes-
sive chains, the Catskills and Taghkames at the
Highlands before it enlarges itself into the broad
expanse of Haverstraw Bay and Tappan Zee on its
way to the ocean.

From Bemis's Heights, where the road from Sara-
toga Springs across the lake — (Saratoga Lake is still
famous for its crisp fried potatoes, sold in paper cor-
nucopiae like candy, and Moon is still the provider,
par excellence, of that dainty) — strikes the point near
the river at the remotest verge which vibrated to the
effects of the battle, to Schuylerville is about ten
miles. This distance the route continues northward
upon the alluvial flat along the Hudson — herein
summer from 1-6 to 1-5 of a mile wide. The expanse
of% the Hudson is unbroken by island for nearly thir-
teen miles. The first island in the distance is just
below the mouth of the Fishkill, by which it is over-
flowed whenever freshets occur. To the left and
west, driving north, is the elevated plateau, so styled,
on which all the manoeuvring and fighting were done.
Although called a plateau it is not so by any means.
The ground is a succession of rolls, separated by

J. Watts de Peysters Visit. 261

ravines, once the beds of considerable brooks. How
troops, in regular formation, traversed this broken
country when it was almost entirely covered by
forests is very hard to understand. It was just the
place for riflemen to " bushwhack on a big scale,"
and Morgan's riflemen had more to do with winning
the victories than any other quantity in the equation,
except the valor and example of Arnold. Why Bur-
goyne did not follow the river road, laid out almost
as at present and much traveled in 1777, is incom-
prehensible, unless it is true, Fata obstant, " The
fates are opposed," " The fates lead him who is will-
ing and drag him who is unwilling." He might have
directed a strong column along the crest above, but
his main body could have followed the river road.
Riedesel did avail himself of it at first, but he soon
had to leave it and wheel to the right to conform to
Burgoyne's own movements and save his superior, on
the i Qth of September, from premature defeat.

By the way, the battle did not take place in the
township of Saratoga, but of Stillwater, which is,
perhaps, the reason why the latter name is sometimes
applied to it. The battle ground, as laid down on
the map, is an irregular, oblong area, north-east to
south-west, about two miles north-north-west of the
present Bemis's Heights post-office. Signboards, set
up either by private or public enterprise, indicate a
great many of the most interesting spots.

About three miles below Schuylerville, at Cove-
ville, is the curious, semi-circular indentation of the

262 J. Watts de Peysters Visit.

river called the Do-ve-gat, Dov-gat, or Dovegate, the
significance of which puzzled a great many writers
on the affairs of 1777. The writer believes he is the
first one that translated it properly. Its meaning is
equivalent to the term known among streets as a
"blind-alley." From the river it looks like an arm
of the stream running round an island, whereas it is
merely a deep cove of very eccentric disposition.
Doubtless, centuries ago, it was a side-channel, gradu-
ally filled at the upper entrance by deposits brought
down by the river.

Burgoyne delivered up his sword to Gates on a
little level spot overlooking the river road, about a
mile south of Schuylerville, and the British laid down
their arms about the site of old Fort Hardy, just
north of the Fishkill and east of Schuylerville, across
the stream from Schuyler's mansion, which Burgoyne
burned, after his last carouse in it the previous night.
That Burgoyne spent the very hours which afforded
him his last opportunities for escape enjoying "a
dainty supper" with "some merry companions," and
near him his mistress, the wife of an English com-
missary, was not generally known until Wm. L. Stone
translated from German into English the Memoirs
of the Baroness Riedesel ; then other testimony to
much the same effect has been published. Without
considering the matter from a moral standpoint, it is
almost impossible to conceive how a general in the
circumstances of Burgoyne, with such a responsi-
bility upon his soul, could have been so dead to the

y. Wat Is de Peysters Visit. 263

sufferings of his inferiors and his duties to his king.
Perhaps there was some excuse in the sensual indulg-
ences tolerated at the time. Lossing tells us that
Burgoyne passed the night prior to his last battle on
the 7th of October, passing the flagon or playing
cards with the Earl of Balcarras (Lossing, F. B. A.
R., I. 44). Generals, in those days, with rare excep-
tions, seemed to think that pretty much their whole
duty was confined to brilliancy and bravery on the
battlefield proper.

This is no place to fight the battle over again, and,
therefore, with these remarks, the attention of the
reader is directed to the site of the Saratoga Battle-
field Monument and the structure itself. Schuyler-
ville, originally Saratoga or Saratog, lies on the north
side of the Fishkill, which, with devious course, con-
stitutes the outlet of Saratoga Lake, issuing from
the lower, or north end. The high ridge, rising
southward from this stream and extending on in the
same direction for many miles, attains its highest ele-
vation about a mile south of the village. There, an
extensive cemetery has been laid out. It already con-
tains many expensive memorials. Just east of this,
villageward, the site was purchased for the Saratoga
Monument. An acre has been paid for and actu-
ally deeded, totally inadequate, although a contract
has been entered into for three acres.

The original foundation, in which the corner stone
was placed in 1877, at the centennial celebration of
the surrender, having been condemned by the archi-

264 J. Watts de Peysters Visit.

tect, J. C. Markham, of Jersey City, a new founda-
tion is now being laid, just west of the first. The
material is of the hard limestone quarried at Glens
Falls. The superstructure is to be of granite. It
will be 154 feet high, and from the summit a visitor
will command a view of the whole country upon
which the contending armies operated, manoeuvred
and fought, and also of the spot where the British
surrendered.

Mr. Markham's original plan was much more elab-
orate or ornate, but the parsimony of the General
and State Governments compelled modifications
which are to be sincerely regretted. Cannon,
trophies of the victories of 1777, mounted on fac-
similes of the orignal carriages, are to stand at each
corner of the platform, and, in the various cham-
bers of the obelisk, it is hoped that memorials will
be collected and exhibited. In the wall of one of
these little museums a tablet is to be inserted, in-
scribed with the names of those who came forward
with their money, to save the site, which had been
sold under foreclosure, and thus secure the appropri-
ation of Congress, whose payment was made on the
proviso that the Association had obtained the abso-
lute possession of the site.

Perhaps, after all, on the whole, this is the best
location for the monument, on account of the com-
prehensiveness of the view which it commands, taking
in, as it does, the whole area of the important action.
Renan justly observes that " those who are incapable

J. Watts de Peysters Visit. 265

of becoming great citizens (were, in fact, destructive
agents), nevertheless, did their part toward progress
(as instruments of fate), and were deeper than sen-
sible people in their insight into the secrets of des-
tiny" (Ante-Christ, 544). Honest judgment would
doubtless have selected as the site of this monument
the very spot — a beautiful one — where Burgoyne
actually gave up his sword, or the great redoubt,
whose capture, through the audacity of Arnold, de-
termined the result of the fighting. Interested
motives, regarding the benefits that Schuylerville
might derive from a constant pilgrimage to such a
shrine, doubtless determined the position. The re-
sult may be happy, but the towering obelisk will
stand on a location which has no claims to the honor,
and in itself possesses no historic interest.*

In the pediment, or whatever the architects style
it, before the shaft or main body of the obelisk
starts, are four niches for statues, one on each side.
Three of these effigies are decided on. Schuyler,
justly and undoubtedly, first ; Gates, necessarily
but undeservedly, second ; and Morgan, third. The
fourth is still undetermined. The architect desires
that the void shall be filled with Arnold. He is hon-
estly and mainly correct. When Arnold won the

* Gen. de Peyster, usually so accurate in his state-
ments, is here in error. The monument marks the
very spot on which the chief portion of Burgoyne's
beleaguered army were encamped.
34

266 J. Watts de Peysters Visit.

battles of Saratoga, the first, igth of September, and
the second, ;th of October, in favor of the revolted
Colonies, he was as faithful a servant of Congress as it
had. His treason was all along subsequent to these
events, and it is but just to say that the injustice of
Congress had as much to do with making him a
traitor as his own passions, stimulated by one very
near to him. " It needs must be that offenses come,"
said Christ, the great philosopher, humanly speaking,
"but woe be to that man by whom the offense
cometh." This applies forcibly to Congress. It was
very little ; it was mean ; it was very unjust. It was
the most unjust to the least deserving of such treat-
ment, to Schuyler, to Starke, and as yet in 1777, to
Arnold. But there is no need of any defense of
Arnold here. His defense has been well made and
himself vindicated by his namesake, Hon. Isaac N.
Arnold, President of the Chicago, Illinois, Historical
Society. Still, if it is settled that Arnold is not to
be admitted to his appropriate place, who is to fill it ?
None other than he is deserving to be associated
with the three already selected. No lesser man has
a right to appear in their company or occupy the
fourth niche. Let it then remain vacant. The
vacancy will speak more eloquently than words.
Every one will ask why the void is there ? The
answer covers the whole ground and explains every-
thing. The statue of Arnold belongs by right in
the unassigned niche ; Americans claim that he was
a traitor. Therefore, his statue cannot be set up in

J. Watts de Peysters Visit. 267

it. Still, as he deserves the place and no other can
adequately serve as his substitute, it is left as it is
without a figure, to indicate that the Association is
just ; and while admitting the full value of Arnold's
services, and while deciding that no other can com-
mensurately occupy the position due to him, it resolves
that the niche his statue should fill shall remain void
in the same manner that there is a veiled and empty
frame among the series of portraits of the Venetian
Doges. This should have been filled with the por-
trait of Mariano Faliero. Others state that the
space for the painting is simply empty, with an in-
scription instead, setting forth the reason. There is
a somewhat similar inscription at Genoa, or in some
other old Italian republican capital, which the writer
observed without noting the place. The most perti-
nent instance, however, is that of Marmont, Duke
of Ragusa, accused., unjustly, of betraying Napoleon
in 1814, whose portrait was omitted from the series

of French marshals.

###•*#

After the termination of the " Slaveholder's Rebel-
lion" a dinner was given at Saratoga Springs by a
prominent political official, who, after the wine cup
had circulated freely, rose and proposed a health or
sentiment, which a witty guest pronounced the most
"moving toast" he had ever heard. It was this:
" Here's to Gen. Rawlins ; if there had never been a
Rawlins there would never have been a Grant."
Gen. - — said he called this a " moving toast " be-

268 J. Watts de Peyster's Visit.

cause it occasioned a general movement to get away
from the table and proximity to such a dangerous
speaker as soon as possible, for fear Grant, (who was
then President) might not regard the sentiment affec-
tionately, and "spot" those who were present and
endorsed it by drinking it.

Justly, a similar idea might find expression in re-
gard to this monument. If there never had been a
William L. Stone there never would have been a
" Saratoga Battlefield Monument." This gentleman,
one of the clearest historians of the Burgoyne cam-
paign, is not only an able historian himself, but
shines with the inherited lustre of his father and
namesake, author of several valuable works con-
nected with revolutionary and ante-revolutionary his-
tory. If it had not been for his son's energy
Schuylerville would not be honored with a grand
memorial of the decisive triumph of the American
First War for Independance.

Before quitting Schuylerville there are two objects
of interest which cannot be passed over without
special notice. Down on the flat, in the angle be-
tween the mouth of the Fishkill and the Hudson
River, stands the mansion of Maj.-Gen. Philip
Schuyler, which he rebuilt in sixty days — Stone says
fifteen — after the Burgoyne surrender, to replace
the dwelling which had been burned by order of
the British general. Some forty years ago the de-
scendant and representative of a patriot second in
common sense and ability to Washington alone —

J. Watts de Peyster's Visit. 269

this is high praise, because he was a bitter enemy of
the writer's people and one of the chief causes of
their ruin — was compelled to sacrifice the ancestral
homestead and with it a tract of 2,503 acres extend-
ing up and along the Fishkill, and embracing within
its limits a succession for a mile of falls and rapids,
which now supply water-power to the mills or facto-
ries which constitute the wealth of the village. Facts
are often stranger than fiction. Fate decreed that
this ancestral homestead should become the property,
by purchase, of an individual who had been the
coachman of the hereditary owner and had become
comparatively wealthy. If there is a book that
abounds in common sense and is true to nature, it is
the Bible, and, if the incident above related is actu-
ally so, does it not realize the sad remark of Solomon
in Ecclesiastes x., 7, " I have seen servants upon
horses and princes walking as servants upon the
earth."

On a projecting rock, not far distant, stands a very
artistic stone church looking down upon the pine-
embowered old Schuyler mansion. From the eligi-
bility and prominence of the site and the large gilt
cross which crowns the spire, the majority decided
that it must be a Roman Catholic place of worship,
because Romanism, from interested motives, if no
others, always selects the most conspicuous position
for its edifices. It is moved thereunto by that asser-
tiveness which would arrogate to itself the preemi-
nence in everything, whereas it only has eminence in

270 J. Watts de Peyster's Visit.

one thing, its power over ignorance, to use it for its
own purposes. It is the biggest property-accumulating
machine in the world. It grasps the babe while in
process of being born, and never relaxes its hold, not
even with death, for it accompanies the corpse to the
grave, always making money out of it, and out of
the survivors if they continue to take interest in the
future of the deceased.

The Episcopal Church, of dark, blue-gray lime-
stone, the ruling stone of this region, is very effect-
ive in mass, and without pretending to any knowledge
of architecture, we agreed that few buildings more
than this seem to realize the beneficial influences.

From Schuylerville, through Grangerville, to Sara-
toga Springs is a thirteen miles ride. At Grangerville
they were rebuilding a dam. In Dutchess County
such a structure would have been considered a profli-
gate waste of materials. The upright timbers
proper were enormous, and in place of the ordinary
horizontal planking, timbers were used of dimensions
sufficient for heavy house beams. The explanation
must either be that lumber is cheap in this region, or
else that future durability is the sole object without
regard to present expense.

From this point, on westward, the country seems to
be exceedingly poor, and there are no signs of the
prosperity evident more immediately along the river.
For instance, the fences were either not kept up at
all or very dilapidated. Sometimes, for long spaces,
they were constructed of roots, a pretty sure sign of

J. Watts de Peyster's Visit. 271

a country recently cleared ; an idea borne out by see-
ing crops of winter grain sown in fields thickly
studded with stumps. Nevertheless the cornstalks
were very tall, the buckwheat, already in shock, the
finest we had ever seen, and potatoes very abundant.
Our party were boasting of the fruit-growing proper-
ties of our own and the adjoining townships in
Dutchess and Columbia Counties, when our driver
broke in with the remark that Saratoga County was
very productive of fruit. We were surprised, having
seen few orchards and little evidence of fruit-growing
communities. "What kind?" "That kind, there,"
pointing to a huge heap of potatoes. Yes, Saratoga
County, indeed, is famous for its potatoes ; its light,
sandy soil is adapted to them.

Few fine groves or woods were noticed. Almost
all the trees in these spindle. The only verdure is
at the top, like the tuft at the end of a shaggy dog's
tail when the rest has been sheared. These remarks
do not apply to the growth along the river. Within
a short distance of the Hudson everything is luxu-
riant, and in the interior we were struck here and
there with single, noble specimens of willows and of
elms worthy of New England.

Right glad were we, as night closed in, to get back
to the United States Hotel at Saratoga Springs.
The last ten miles of our drive had been exceedingly
tedious. We had been nine hours on the road, and
our route described something like an equilateral tri-
angle, of which the Hudson river constituted the

272 J. Waits de Peyster's Visit.

base. " Jordan must have been a hard road to travel,"
when Burgoyne plunged into this wilderness, 104
years ago. The roads are heavy, as a rule, not sel-
dom rough, and difficult even to-day, with stumps left
sometimes in dangerous proximity to the wheels.
What must they have been when the district was
sparsely populated, when the bottoms were marshy
and so large a portion of it was covered with dense
forests? It is true that we saw everything under
great disadvantages. A drought had prevailed
for over two months, and much of the foliage was
turned as if by a frost, and, again, when not discol-
ored, shriveled by the excessive heat, unredeemed by
moisture. Again, the distant landscape appeared to
be shrouded in fog and the sky obscured. Our driver
told us that this was attributable to smoke from enor-
mous fires in the forests on the nearest mountains.
The view is bounded on the north by the souther-
most spurs or tiers of the Adirondacks, of which the
higher ranges were entirely hidden. The effects of
the smoke were plainly visible to the eye and appa-
rently, in degree, to the sense of smell.

Perhaps under a clear sky and on a bright, sunny
day, after refreshing rains — for water is the life
given to every vegetable growth — Saratoga County
may present a much more inviting and cheerful
aspect, even to one whose house is upon the Hudson,
and in full sight of the glorious Kaatskills.*

* With this account, by Gen. de Peyster, the most
interesting visits to the battle grounds close. It

J. Watts de Peysters Visit. 273

would be easy to mention those of others more or
less known. Enough, however, has been given to
show the great interest that the site on which one of
the " thirteen decisive battles of the world, from
Marathon to Waterloo," has always excited in the
breasts of travelers, great thinkers, statesmen and
scholars. The following extract, however, from the
Schuylerville Standard of October 14, 1885, is in
point : " Last week Clements R. Markham, Secretary
of the Royal Geographical Society of London, Eng.,
and a grandson of Archbishop Markham, who was a
member of the cabinet of George III., and whose
likeness is given in one of the reliefs which adorn
the interior of the Saratoga Monument, visited the
monument and expressed himself very greatly pleased.
In a letter to his relative, Mr. J. C. Markham, the
architect, Secretary Markham writes : ' I went up to
the top and made out the surrounding sites very
clearly. As a composition I am very much impressed
by the design of the obelisk. The rough stone and
the buttresses at the lower part, give an effect of
strength and dignity, without detracting from the
grace of the general effect. I also thought that the
details of the doors, and windows, and string courses
were admirably managed. Mr. William L. Stone's
book is excellent, and appears to be nearly exhaust-
ive. It was a great help to me in making out the
places from the top of the obelisk."1

35

APPENDIX I.

SCHUYLER'S FAITHFUL SPY.

Moses Harris, the subject of this sketch, was a man
of more than ordinary mental and physical ability,
and a cooper by trade. He was born on the 8th day
of November, 1745, in Dutchess County, N. Y.,
where his father, Moses, Sen., had settled with a
colony from Wales. The latter, on the breaking out
of the Revolutionary war, was living on the Brayton
farm, about one mile south of Fort Ann village, but
went back in the early spring of 1777 to Dutchess
County, where he remained until Burgoyne's surren-
der enabled him to return. His son, who was an earn-
est advocate of the patriot cause, was accustomed to
visit a Tory uncle, Gilbert Harris by name, then
living in the town of Kingsbury, on a farm long
known as the " Bill Colvin," or " the Thousand Ap-
pletree Farm," and now owned by Thomas Owens.
At such times he invariably espoused the side of the
Crown, completely deceiving his uncle, who would
applaud his nephew's loyalty, and urge him to stand
firmly by the king.

Young Harris, who during the early summer of
1777, was living in Dutchess County with his father

276 Appendix I.

and brothers, Joseph and William, entered the Ameri-
can service under the following circumstances :
Schuyler had expressed to a friend his great need of
a trusty spy to obtain information of the designs of
Burgoyne. Schuyler's friend, after a little reflection^
replied that he knew just the man for his purpose,
adding that not one in ten thousand was so well fitted
for that dangerous and important service. Schuyler
lost no time in sending for Harris, who readily fell in
with the plan of that general.

Before setting out on his hazardous mission he vis-
ited his Tory uncle, who asked him how he would
like to serve the king as a messenger from Montreal
to New York. The nephew seemingly entered into
the idea with alacrity, and so completely did he hood-
wink the uncle, that the latter urged him to tarry until
morning. About midnight he was aroused from sleep
and informed that if he were really in earnest an op-
portunity had arisen to serve his king, and at the
same time win future favor and great reward. He
dressed himself and followed his uncle to the barn,
where a secret passage disclosed a room in the centre
of the hay-mow; Here he was introduced to three
British officers, who told him they were seeking for
a trusty messenger to carry communications between
Generals Burgoyne and Clinton. The uncle's recom-
mendations and the young man's apparent honesty
and zeal won the confidence of the officers, and Harris
was engaged on the spot to enter his Majesty's ser-
vice. After delaying a day to make a canteen with

Schuylers Faithful Spy. 277

three heads for the more safe convenience of the dis-
patches, Harris visited Burgoyne, who, fully trusting
him, confirmed the bargain with the officers, and im-
mediately made him the bearer of dispatches to Clin-
ton. On reaching Fort Edward he had an interview
with Schuyler, who read and altered the dispatches
so as to mislead Clinton and delay his advance
towards Albany; and on his return, the dispatches
were again opened and changed so as to completely
puzzle Burgoyne.* The usual custom of Harris,
however, on his trips south was to stop over at
Easton with a Mr. Fish, who would take the papers
to Schuyler's headquarters, where they were copied,
altered and returned to the spy, and by him taken to
Albany. Here they were delivered at once to Wil-
liam Shepherd, who forwarded them to New York,
giving Harris in return dispatches for Burgoyne from
Clinton, which, on the way back would, as usual, be
subjected to the inspection of Schuyler.

Shepherd, at length, becoming suspicious of the
King's messenger, tried to poison him. The attempt

* A similar trick was once played by Frederick
the Great, who, after Leignizt, i6th August,
1 760, caused a letter to fall into the hands of the
Russian general, Chernicheff, which induced the Mus-
covite, with every chance of success before him, to
retreat precipitately. The incident mentioned in the
text doubtless originated the "Canteen Story," told
by General J. Watts de Peyster, in one of his able let-
ters to the New York Times on the " Burgoyne Cam-
paign." See, also, Stone's Burgoyne, p. 342, note.

278 Appendix I.

failed; but shortly after the spy was arrested at
Tripoli, near the dwelling of his old Tory uncle, and
conducted to an island in the centre of the big
swamp east of Sandy Hill, where he was nearly killed
by his captors in their endeavors to make him confess
his treason. Moses Harris, the youngest son of the
spy, lately told Mr. S. O. Cross, of Sandy Hill,
N. Y., that the Tories strung up his father on a tree
three times, to extort a confession of guilt. The
prisoner persisted in declaring his fidelity to the King,
and finally, having given the Masonic sign of dis-
tress, the captain of the gang — himself a Mason -
let him go, remarking that it was possible a brother
might otherwise perish unjustly.* This, however, in
turn, aroused the enmity of the Whigs, some of
whom swore they would shoot him at sight. Jacob
Benson especially, a staunch patriot, became so en-
raged that he lay in wait for him all of one night,
threatening to "put a ball through the cussed Tory."
But Swart, a loyalist neighbor, warned the supposed
traitor in time, and the latter, taking another route,
escaped the vengeance of the infuriated Whig. In-

* The celebrated Mohawk Chief, Tha-yen-da-na-gea
(Brant), during the Revolution, also saved several
captives on recognizing the "Grand Hailing Sign of
Distress." Brant was made a Mason by Sir William
Johnson, at Johnstown, N. Y. See Stone's Brant.
Brant also, by the way, visited Burgoyne at Fort
Miller; but, perhaps, not being so sanguine of re-
sults, made no effort to restrain Burgoyne's Indians
from deserting.

Schuyler s Faithful Spy. 279

deed, the presence of mind of Harris never forsook
him, and he always eluded the most dangerous traps.
Once, when badly wounded, as he was fleeing from
danger, he escaped immediate pursuit by swimming
the Hudson near Fort Miller, and took shelter with
Noah Pain, a Whig, to whom he revealed in confidence
his relations with Schuyler and the American army.
His host respected his secret, and concealed him
until he was able to resume his journey. So great,
however, had now become the feeling against him,
that Schuyler was obliged to have him arrested and
thrown into jail in Albany, but he was released by
private instructions to the jailor as soon as the ex-
citement among the Whigs had subsided.

Soon after his release he was sent by Schuyler to
St. John's with false information to the authorities in
Canada, by whom he was handsomely rewarded ; but
before leaving he was again suspected of duplicity.
He seems, however, always to have so acted his part
as to escape, and on this occasion, when summoned
before his accusers, he, as was his wont, assumed the
air and attitude of injured innocence. He tore open
his ruffled shirt bosom, and bearing his breast, called
upon those present to shoot him then and there. It
was, he said, worse than death to be suspected of
disloyalty to his King; and once more he demanded
that his mental tortures should be ended by death.
So well feigned were his actions, that for the time
being, he completely imposed upon the spectators.
Not only was there no opposition to his leaving the

280 Appendix I.

room, but on his departure he was again entrusted
with important dispatches for the Southern army.

He had not been long gone, however, before the
authorities, regretting their action, sent an officer to
arrest him. It was too late. The spy was nowhere
to be found. Taking advantage of the darkness
which by that time had come on, Harris hastened to
put himself outside of the British lines ; and within
an hour he was well on his way to the American
army. This haste increased the general suspicion.
Swift Indian runners were put upon his track ; but
being fleet of foot, and possessed of great powers
of endurance, he outstripped his pursuers, and
reached Vaughn's Corners in the town of Kingsbury
(Washington county, N. Y.). At this point he was
so fatigued and hard pressed, that in passing an
old building used for boiling potash — which stood
on a farm now owned by J. W. Brown — he dodged
in, and clambering up a ladder, hid himself be-
hind a large chimney. A moment after the Indians
came round to the place where he had entered.
One of them ran up the ladder, but seeing no one,
gave a grunt and returned to his companions. The
Indians were not seen again, and it is supposed
they went over to visit Gil Harris, who lived half a
mile west. Harris's stratagem, in not pulling up the
ladder after him, probably saved his life, for had the
savages suspected the fugitive to be in the garret,
they would have set fire to the cabin and thus
destroyed him. In the evening he made his way

Schuyters Faithful Spy. 281

to the American lines, where he was arrested as a
spy, and closely guarded until his true character was
known. The despatches of the Canadian authori-
ties, which he had managed to preserve, he delivered
to Schuyler in person, as his friend Fish was sick
and unable to act as the "go between."

At length he was so closely watched by Tory spies
in Albany, that he was forced to abandon the British
service, carrying the last message with which he was
entrusted by Burgoyne, to Washington. At the
same time he bore with him to the Commander-in-
Chief a commendatory letter from Schuyler, who
had given him one hundred guineas — probably out
of the secret service money. He was offered a good
position in the Southern army by Washington, but
he declined it ; and throwing off his disguise as a
Tory, he returned to Kingsbury, saying that " all the
Tories this side of Hell should not drive him from
his home." Nor did they. He remained on his farm
until 1787, when, having bought a large tract of
land in Queensbury, he moved his family thither the
succeeding year. He never entered the Continental
army, but became a pensioner in his old age for his
services as a spy. He died on the i3th of Novem-
ber, 1838, and a monument to his memory in the
burial ground at Harrisena (Warren county, N. Y.)
bears the following inscription : West side : MOSES
HARRIS — DIED — Nov. 13, 1838 — AGED 89 YEARS
— ii MONTHS AND 24 DAYS — North side : IN JUNE,

1787, I MOVED WITH TWO OF MY BROTHERS, WlLLIAM
36

282 Appendix I.

AND JOSEPH HARRIS, ON TO THE JOHN LAWRENCE PAT-
TENT, AS YOU MAY SEE BY THE RECORDS IN THE OFFICE

OF THE COUNTY. BUT NOW I AM DONE WITH THIS

WORLD AND RACE, AND NONE BUT GOD SHALL SAY
WHERE SHALL BE MY ABIDING PLACE."

" I have visited his son," writes Mr. Cross to the
author, " and my conclusions are that Moses Harris
was the man of all others who risked most in becom-
ing a target for both sides, thereby procuring infor-
mation that resulted in the defeat of Burgoyne.
Harris, like thousands of other common men who
have done great service, passed into obscurity and
was forgotten. More than a hundred years have
elapsed and justice should now be done to one of
the bravest of men, who lived in times that tried
men's souls ! His name should be placed high on
the Saratoga monument that is to record the results
of all these heroic deeds."

APPENDIX II,

GATES'S SCOUTS ; BRYAN ; HARDIN, ETC.

General Gates, also, besides Schuyler, had scouts
on whom he relied to furnish intelligence of Bur-
goyne's movements, chief of whom was Alexander
Bryan, who succeeded Harris in his delicate duties
to Gen. Schuyler. Bryan, during the American
Revolution, kept an inn two miles north of Water-
ford, on what was then the great road between
the northern and southern frontiers. His house,
naturally, was frequented by the partisans of each
side, toward whom he behaved so discreetly that he
was molested by neither, but was confided in by
both. His patriotism, however, was well known to
the Committee of Safety of Stillwater, by whom he
was recommended to Gates as a suitable person to
report the intended movements of the enemy. Bryan
tarried in the neighborhood of Burgoyne's army —
at that time lying between Fort Miller and the Bat-
tenkill — until he was convinced that preparations
were making for an immediate advance. Then on
the 1 5th of September, in the early gray of the
morning, he started with the tidings ; and though
pursued by troopers, he managed to escape, and

284 Appendix II.

arrived safely at the headquarters of Gates late the
following night. Bryan afterward removed to Sara-
toga Springs, in the cemetery of which village there is
a monument erected to his memory bearing the fol-
lowing inscription : "In memory of Alexander Bryan,
Died April 9th, 1825, aged 92 years. The first per-
manent settler, and the first to keep a public house
here for visitors. An unpaid patriot, who alone and
at great peril, gave the first and only information of
Burgoyne's intended advance on Stillwater, which
led to timely preparations for the battle of Sept.
1 9th, followed by the memorable victory of October
7th, 1777."

Another scout was Jacob Van Alstyne — a sketch
of whom is given by Jeptha R. Simms. John
Strover (the father of the late John Strover of
Schuylerville, N. Y. ) had also the command of a
party of scouts well acquainted with the country.
" He was present," says General Bullard, " at the
execution of Thomas Lovelace, a malignant Tory,
who was hung upon an oak tree, about thirty rods
south of where George Strover now resides. At
that date the gravel ridge extended east as far as
where the canal now is, and the oak tree stood upon
the east point of the gravel ridge near where the
store house of the Victory company now stands.
When the Waterford and Whitehall turnpike was
constructed through there, about 1813, the stump of
the old oak was removed by the excavation. John
Strover had frequently informed his son George that

Gates s Scouts. 285

Lovelace was buried in a standing posture, near the
tree. When the excavation took place, George
stood by and saw the bones, yet in a standing pos-
ture, removed from the very spot which had been
pointed out by his father. The skull of Lovelace is
now (1895) in the possession of the daughter of the
late George Strover, who lives in the " Schuyler
Mansion " at Schuylerville, N. Y. During the cam-
paign Burgoyne employed Lovelace and other tories
as spies, and they were generally secreted in the
woods between old Saratoga and Saratoga Lake.
One day Capt. Dunham, then residing near the lake,
in company with Daniel Spike and a colored man, was
scouring the woods, and while crossing upon a tree
which had fallen over the brook east of the Wagman
farm, discovered five guns stacked in the hiding
place of the spies. With a sudden rush, Dunham
and his associates seized the guns and captured all
five of the spies, bound and brought them into the
American camp."

This adventure of Dunham brings to mind an
equally daring exploit (performed during the time
that Burgoyne and Gates lay opposite each other)
by Lieut. John Hardin — the great-grandfather of
Mrs. Ellen H. Walworth of Saratoga Springs, N. Y.,
— who was attached to Morgan's Rifle Corps. Har-
din was often selected by Morgan for enterprises of
peril which required discretion and intrepidity to
ensure success. While with the army of Gen. Gates,
he was sent on a reconnoitering expedition with

286 Appendix II.

orders to capture a prisoner for the purpose of ob-
taining information. Marching silently in advance
of his party, he found himself, on reaching the abrupt
summit of a hill, in the presence of three British sol-
diers and a Mohawk Indian. The moment was
critical, but without the slightest hesitation he pre-
sented his rifle and ordered them to surrender. The
British immediately threw down their arms ; the In-
dian clubbed his gun. Hardin continued to advance
on them, but none of his men having come up to his
assistance he turned his head a little to one side and
called them. The Indian warrior observing Har-
din's eye withdrawn from him, reversed his gun with
a rapid motion for the purpose of firing. Hardin
caught the gleam of light that was reflected from the
polished barrel of the gun, and readily divining its
meaning, brought his own rifle to a level, and with-
out raising his gun to his face gained the first fire
and gave the Indian a mortal wound. The ball from
the warrior's rifle passed through Hardin's hair. The
British prisoners were marched into camp, and Har-
din received the thanks of General Gates.

" Great and crushing as was the defeat at Sara-
toga," continues Gen. Bullard, " the war was not yet
ended, and the struggle continued for five years
longer. Nor did this locality escape the trials and
hardships of those times which tried men's souls.

" For instance,the farm of James Brisbin had suffi-
cient wheat and cattle to have paid the purchase
price, but it was all taken and consumed by Bur-

Gates s Scouts. 287

goyne's army without compensation, notwithstanding
the fair promises made in the proclamation of that
General of July loth. We should except, however,
a single cow, which escaped from her captors, re-
turned home and was secreted and saved."*

* This is an appropriate place in which to correct
the statements of some writers, even those on the
American side, to the effect that the Americans were
seemingly the only ones who committed acts of plun-
der. So patriotic and able a writer as Gen. J. Watts
de Peyster, for example, has given countenance to
this view, by citing the well-known advice of Col.
Skeene to Breyman, " to scatter things on the
march, as the Rebels would stop to pick them up,"
thus allowing time for that officer to make good his
retreat. Still, this sort of thing was by no means
confined to the so called ll Rebels," as might be
inferred from the remark of Col. Skeene. In a " For-
gotten diary of a Red-coat officer" detailing his
experience in the retreat from Concord, published
for the first time in full in the Boston Evening Tran-
script, Apr. 1 8, 1894, the "Diary" closes as follows:
" Our soldiers, the others say \i. *., on the Retreat
from Concord] tho' they shew'd no want of courage,
yet were so wild and irregular that there was no
keeping 'em in any order ; by their eagerness and
inattention they kill'd many of our own People ; and
the plundering was shameful; many hardly thought
of anything else ; what was worse they were encour-
aged by some Officers."

APPENDIX III.

ANECDOTES OF BURGOYNE'S CAMPAIGN — BY

THE LATE CHAS. NEILSON, OF BEMUS'S

HEIGHTS.

On the near approach of Burgoyne with so power-
ful, and as yet successful an army, with his horde of
unrestrained savages, who were continually in advance
and on his flanks, prowling about the country, plun-
dering, murdering and scalping all who refused loy-
alty to the British king, the inhabitants on both sides
of the Hudson river, in the wildest consternation
and alarm, fled in every direction. In one place a
long cavalcade of ox carts occasionally intermixed
with wagons, filled with all kinds of furniture hur-
riedly thrown in, and not often selected by the own-
ers with reference to their use or value, on occasions
of such alarm, were stretched for some distance along
the road ; while in another might be seen a number on
horseback, and here and there two mounted at once
on a steed panting under the weight of a double load,
closely followed by a crowd of pedestrians, and some
perhaps weeping mothers, with a child or two scream-
ing in their arms or on their backs, trudging along
with fearful and hurried step. These found great

Anecdotes of Burgoynes Campaign. 289

difficulty in keeping up with the rapid flight of their
mounted friends. Here and there would be seen
some humane person assisting the more unfortunate,
by relieving them of their burdens with which they
were encumbered ; but generally a principle of sel-
fishness prevented much interchange of friendly
offices — every one for himself was the common cry.

The men of this generation can never know what
were the sorrows of those fathers that saw their
children exposed to dangers and death, and what the
agonies of those kind mothers, who pressed their
offspring to their bosom in the constant apprehension
of seeing them torn from their embraces, to become
the victims of savage cruelty.*

At one time while the two armies were encamped
near each other (after the battle of Freeman's farm)
about twenty of the most resolute inhabitants in the
vicinity, collected together for the purpose of having
a frolic, as they termed it, of some kind or other.
After their arrival at the place of rendezvous, and a

* In corroboration of the above just remark I give
here an epitaph, copied from the inscription found on a
monument in Westminster, Vermont, and furnished
to Slade by the late Hon. Wm. C. Bradley. It is
preserved in " Slade " both, as he says, as a literary
curiosity and as exhibiting " an unequivocal indication
of the spirit of the times? The history of the trans-
action, which it commemorates, may be found in
" Slade's Vermont State Papers," pages 55-9. It is
an account of one of the most unprovoked and blood-
thirsty transactions of the American revolution, and
37

290 Appendix III.

number of propositions had been logically discussed,
they finally concluded, with more courage than pru-
dence, that, by a coup- de-main, they would go and
bring in one of the British advance pickets, which
was posted on the north bank of the middle ravine.
Having with much formality selected their several
officers, and furnished themselves with suitable arms
and other equipments, they marched off in zV-regular
military style. The martial costume of the captain,
for by such title he was addressed, exhibited the ex-
tremes of continental etiquette, personified in one
instance, by a sharp and huge three-cocked hat, pro-
fusely trimmed with the threadbare fragments of
thrown-off gold lace, surmounting a well pomatumed

fully deserves a place (as a record} beside the " Bat-
tle of Golden Hill," New York, and the " Boston
Massacre." As "Slade" is now out of print we re-
produce it.

EPITAPH.

"In Memory of William French Son to Mr Na-
thaniel French Who Was Shot at Westminster
March Ye 13* 1775 by the hands of Cruel Ministereal
tools of Georg ye 3d in the Corthouse at a 1 1 a Clock
at Night in the 22d year of his Age."

" Here William French his Body lies
For Murder his blood for Vengance cries
King Georg the third his Tory crew
tha with a bawl [ball] his head Shot threw
For Liberty and his Countrys Good
he Lost his Life his Dearest blood."

Anecdotes of Burgoynes Campaign. 291

and powdered head. A long waisted blue coat,
turned up with rather sun-bleached buff, that met and
parted at the same time on his breast; a black silk
neck-kerchief, drawn tightly around his throat, dis-
covering the balance of power, or rather the center
of gravity to be lying somewhere in the region of
the olfactory organ, completed the upper half of this
mischief-bent volunteer officer. A pair of buckskin
small clothes drawn tightly over a muscular thigh,
were met at the knee by a pair of straight-sided boots,
that, doubtless, by their stiffness and want of pliability
prevented anything like an attack upon the limb
inside. An old white belt thrown over the whole
man, and a heavy sabre with a leather scabbard,
completed the brilliant costume of this son of chiv-
alry, and zr-regular friend of the Continental Congress.
The other ^w^-missioned officers, for such by way of
distinguishment were they called, were fully armed
and accoutred in a similar manner, but somewhat in-
ferior in brilliancy. Brown tow shirts were the pano-
ply of the farmer-soldiers ; over their broad should-
ers hung powder horns and shot bags, manufactured
during the long winter evenings, and now and then
stopped up with a corn cob, which had escaped the
researches of the swinish multitude. Muskets were
rather uncommon among the inhabitants in those
days of martial exploit, and in their stead, long fowl-
ing-pieces were substituted.

In such a group of combatants, just escaped, as it
were, from the tomahawk, hastily equipped for the

292 Appendix III.

present emergency, and bearing a grotesque appear-
ance, the name of Steuben was of no more weight
than the feather that danced in the breeze. Thus
armed and accoutred, the sons of daring intrepidity
marched off about ten o'clock at night, with more
courage than order, fully determined to conquer or
die in the glorious cause of their beloved country,
then bleeding at every pore. As they approached
within musket-shot distance of their unsuspecting
enemy they were formed, or rather formed them-
selves in order of battle, and advanced in three
%rand divisions — one by a circuitous route, to gain
their rear, while the other two posted themselves on
their flanks. After giving time for each party to
gain their several positions, the resolute captain, who
was prepared for the purpose, gave the preconcerted
signal by a deafening blast on an old horse trumpet,
whose martial sound had often cheered the mounted
troops to fierce and bloody combat, when all, with
fearless, step " rushed bravely on " with clattering
arms, through rustling leaves and crackling brush,
with the usual parade of a hundred men. As they
closed in the leaders of each division, in a bold and
commanding voice, and before the guard could say
" Who comes there ?" called, or rather bawled out,
"Ground your arms, or you are all dead men !" Sup-
posing they were surrounded by a much superior
force, and deeming resistance, under such circum-
stances, of no avail, the officer of the guard gave the
orders, when their arms were immediately grounded,

Anecdotes of Burgoynes Campaign. 293

and thirty British soldiers surrendered themselves
"prisoners of war" to only two-thirds of their num-
ber, and those undisciplined American farmers.

Accompanying the American army were a great
number of women, principally foreigners, many of
whom had husbands or brothers in the action, and
many who followed merely for the sake of plunder,
as was manifested during the night after the action
of the 7th October. The next morning after the
battle every man that was left dead on the field, and
even those who were supposed to be mortally
wounded, and not yet dead, but helpless, were found
stripped of their clothing, which rendered it almost
impossible to distinguish between American and
British. But during the action a heartrending and
yet, to some, a laughable, scene took place in the
American camp, and probably the same in the
British. In the heat of the battle, and while the
cannon were constantly roaring like oft peals of dis-
tant thunder, and making the earth to quake from its
very foundation, some of those women, wringing
their hands, apparently in the utmost distress, and
frantically tearing their hair in the agony of their
feelings, were heard to cry out, in the most lament-
able exclamations, " Och, my husband! my poor hus-
band ! Lord Jesus, spare my poor husband !" which
would be often repeated, and sometimes by fifteen or
twenty voices at once ; while the more hardened ones,
and those rejoicing in the prospects of plunder,
would break out in blasphemous imprecations, ex-

294 Appendix III.

claiming, " D — n your poor husband, you can get
another !" And in this manner the scene continued
during the action ; and I have heard it observed by
those who were present that they could not help
smiling, even through their tears, at the pitiful exhi-
bition.

The Germans were found almost totally unfit for
the business they were engaged in. They were
unable to march through the woods and encounter
the difficulties incident to our then almost unsettled
country. Many of them deserted to our army before
and after the convention at Saratoga. Among those
of the German troops who surrendered, were the
Hesse-Hanau regiment, Riedesel's dragoons and
Specht's regiment, the most remarkable of the whole.
The Hessians were extremely dirty in their persons,
and had a collection of wild animals in their train -
the only thing American they had captured.* Here

* Until Green's and Hiking's works on the Hessians
came out, it had always been the habit of all writers
on both sides to sneer at and ridicule the Hessians.
But they were really to be pitied. The abject slave
of his German petty prince, the Hessian was not
allowed to ask why or wherefore he was to fight.
He knew but one will — that of his military lord and
superior. That he did not, however, yearn to return
to his fatherland, is clearly shown in the fact that as
many as could deserted, and in Massachusetts and
Virginia became well-to-do and reputable farmers -
many of whose descendants are living to this day
— chief men in their respective communities. As in

Anecdotes of Burgoynes Campaign. 295

could be seen an artillery-man leading a black grizzly
bear, who every now and then would rear upon his
hind legs as if he were tired of going upon all fours,
or occasionally growl his disapprobation at being

point, I here give an extract from the private diary
of Capt. Biddle, during the revolution :

Although, as we have seen, it was one of Biddle's
chief motives in enlisting to have a shot at the Hes-
sians, he saw cause later to change his opinion of
these mercenaries, " when he came to know many of
them, and considered that they were a set of poor
wretches, obliged to go wherever they were ordered
by their prince." He records that " many of them
captured with Burgoyne were at Reading, and were
very useful to the farmers in the neighborhood, who
hired them and found they were hardworking, indus-
trious fellows. I know several who have become
men of property, and behaved well. One of them
has been with me eleven years." He says

when he first came to America he and all the Hessians
firmly believed that if they were taken by the Ameri-
cans they would be roasted and eaten. He notes
with indignation the conduct of an American surgeon
who was employed to attend the wounded Hessians
taken prisoners after the attack upon the fort at Red
Bank. This man boasted, it seems, that "whenever
he was called to a Hessian wounded in the leg or
arm he immediately amputated it, whether necessary
or not, to prevent their doing any more mischief."

Neilson, however, is wrong in styling these " Hes-
sians." They were Brunswickers — the Hessians be-
ing in the southern department Bancroft, also, falls
into this same error. The above remark, neverthe-
less, applies with equal force to the Brunswickers.

296 Appendix III.

pulled along by his chain. In the same manner a
tamed deer would be seen tripping lightly after a
grenadier. Young foxes were also observed looking
sagaciously at the spectators from the top of a bag-
gage wagon, or a young racoon securely clutched
under the arm of a sharpshooter. There were a
great many women accompanying the Germans, and
a miserable looking set of oddly dressed, gypsy
featured females they were.

It is said that no insults were offered to the pris-
oners as they marched off, and they felt grateful for
it. However, after they got out of the camp, many
of the British soldiers were extremely abusive, curs-
ing the rebels and their own hard fate. The troops
were escorted by some of the New England militia,
and crossed the river at Stillwater, on a bridge of
rafts, which had been constructed by the Americans
while the army was encamped on Bemis's heights.*
On the night of the surrender, a number of Indians
and squaws, the relics of Burgoyne's aboriginal force,

*The army of Burgoyne was escorted by Gens.
Glover and Whipple to Cambridge, near Boston with
a competent guard of militia. " The first night of the
retreat" [Oct. 7], writes Glover to Heath, Oct. Qth,
'77, "we halted half a mile in the rear of them [the
British army]; there remained the whole night with
our arms in our hands: not a man slept. About
four in the morning, they began to move. We
pushed on until they were driven into their strong
works on the River Road [Wilbur's Basin]. Skir-

Anecdotes of Burgoynes Campaign. 297

were quartered under a strong guard for safe keep-
ing. Without this precaution their lives would not
have been safe from the exasperated militia.

While the British army lay on the north bank of
Fisk creek, the east side of the river, in addition to
the regular troops, was lined with American militia.
One of them, an expert swimmer, discovered a num-
ber of the enemy's horses feeding in a meadow of
General Schuyler's, opposite, and asked permission
of his captain to go over and get one of them. It
was given, and the man instantly stripped, and swam
across the river. He ascended the bank and select-
ing a fine bay horse for his prize, approached the
animal, seized and mounted him instantly. This last
was the work of a moment. He forced the horse

mishing parties were sent out the whole day and
some prisoners taken."

The following, also, is from the journal of Ephriam
Squier, a sergeant in the Connecticut Line of the
Continental Army :

"Oct. 1 7th. This morning, at 4 o'ck, paraded
again, ground our arms at about 1 1 o'clk, orders to
strike our tents and load them and march to head-
quarters immediately, which we did as soon as pos-
sible and marched by the road just north of the
Meeting House so as to see the prisoners march by
towards Head-Quarters, a very agreeable sight, I
thought for some time, but was weary before they
had all passed by, though they marched brisk, yet
they had hardly all passed us by the sun half an
hour high. They were more than three hours in
passing."

38

298 Appendix III.

into a gallop, plunged down the bank and brought
him safely over to the American camp, although a
volley of musketry was fired at him from a party of
British soldiers posted at a distance beyond. His
success was hailed with enthusiasm, and it had a cor-
responding effect on his own adventurous spirit.
After he had rested himself, he went to his officer
and remarked, that it was not proper that a private
should ride, whilst his commander went on foot.
" So, sir," added he " if you have no objections, I will
go and catch another for you, and next winter when
we are home, we will have our own fun in driving a
pair of Burgoyne's horses." The captain seemed to
think it would be rather a pleasant thing and gave a
ready consent. The fellow actually went across the
second time, and with equal success, and brought
over a horse that matched exceedingly well with the
other. The men enjoyed this prank very much, and
it was a circumstance familiar to almost every one in
the army at that time.

Another circumstance happened about the same
time, and shows that families were not only divided
in feeling on the subject of the war, but that the
natural ties which bind the same kith and kin to-
gether were not always proof against the political
animosities of the times. When Burgoyne found his
boats were not safe, and, in fact, much nearer the
main body of the American army than his own, it
became necessary to land his provisions, of which he
had already been short for many weeks, in order to

Anecdotes of Burgoynes Campaign. 299

prevent his army being actually starved into submis-
sion. This was done under a heavy fire from the
American troops, who were posted on the opposite
side of the river. On one of these occasions a per-
son by the name of Mr. , at Salem, and a for-
eigner by birth, and who had at the very time a son
in the British army, crossed the river at De Ridder' s*

* On the east side of the Hudson River, opposite
Schuylerville, N. Y., is the old homestead of the
De Ridder family. The original house was burned
in 1836, being somewhat nearer the road on the east.
When the lands in the patent of Saratoga were still
uncultivated, and in great part covered with wood, it
was then that three young and robust men, Killian
De Ridder, Philip Schuyler (who was shot in 1745),

and Winne, started from the city of Albany with

packs upon their backs, and penetrated the wilds of the
upper Hudson till they reached this neighborhood.
Here they settled and cultivated the land, enduring
the perilous and toilsome vicissitudes of a frontier
life. The fire which destroyed the old family man-
sion also destroyed a great number of old and curi-
ous books, papers and collected relics and memen-
toes. One of the things which escaped the ravages
of the fire was an old Dutch family Bible. Upon its
title page is the following sentence, explanatory of
its name and the date of publication, etc.: " Gedaen
ter Vergaderinge van de Hoogh gemelte Staten
Generael. In den Hage den 29, Julij, 1637. Was
gegparaphreert, A. Ploss, Van Amstel, Onder stont,
Ter Ordenmantie van deselve. Geteechent, Cornelis
Musch." From the family register it appears that
Simon De Ridder, son of Killian, "was born the 2Oth

300 Appendix III.

with a person by the name of M'Neil ; they went in
a canoe, and arriving opposite to the place intended,
crossed over to the western bank, on which a redoubt

day of December, 1765, on Thursday morning at 4
o'clock, Walter and Annatie Becker, sponsors." It is
perceived that the custom of baptizing children on
the day of their birth was followed by this early
family. Simon De Ridder was married to Catherine
Becker, daughter of John A. and Hannah Becker,
February 15, 1786. His second wife, Maria Van
Schaick, daughter of Jacob and Geertie Van Schaick,
he married February i5th, 1790. He died July i3th,
1832. He took a very prominent part in the War of
1812, and was known as General Simon De Ridder.
Several of the descendants of the De Ridder family
and their connections are still living and hold posi-
tions of great trust, besides being influential mem-
bers of their respective communities. Mr. J. H. De
Ridder, cashier of the Citizens's National Bank of
Saratoga Springs, N. Y., takes great pride (and de-
servedly) of his ancestors. The late wife, also, of
Charles W. Mayhew, for many years the honored
superintendent of the Victory Mills, of Schuylerville,
N. Y., was the eldest daughter of Col. Walter De
Ridder, who was in the War of 1812. His father was
the Gen. Samuel De Ridder above mentioned, who was
contemporary with Philip Schuyler, 2d., son of Gen.
Schuyler, of Revolutionary fame, and were great
friends. The De Ridders, as above stated, settled on
the east side of the Hudson, and the Schuylers on
the west, both owning large tracts of land. The
ancestor of Mr. Mayhew was Thomas Mayhew, who
came to America early in 1600 removing from Water-
town, Mass., in 1642, began the settlement at Edgar-

Anecdotes of Burgoynes Campaign. 301

called Fort Lawrence had been erected. They
crawled up the bank with their arms in their hands,
and peeping over the upper edge, they saw a man in
a blanket coat loading a cart. They instantly raised
their guns to fire, an action more savage than com-
mendable. At the moment the man turned so as to
be more plainly seen, old Mr. said to his com-
panion, now that's my own son Hughy, but I'll be d — 'd
for a' that if I sill not gi' him a shot. He then actu-
ally fired at his own son, as the person really proved
to be, but happily without effect. Having heard the
noise made by their conversation, and the cocking of
their pieces, which the nearness of his position ren-
dered perfectly practicable, he ran round the cart and
the balls lodged in the felloe of the wheel. The re-
port drew the attention of the neighboring guards,
and the two marauders were driven from their lurk-
ing place. While retreating with all possible speed
M'Neil was wounded in the shoulder, and while alive
carried the wound about unhealed to his last day.
Had the ball struck the old Scotchman, it is ques-
tionable whether any one would have considered it
more than even-handed justice, commending the
chalice to his own lips.

town, Martha's Vineyard, and was Governor and
patentee of Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket and Eliza-
beth Isles, preaching there 73 years. Mr. Mayhew
is in the eighth generation. Mr. Mayhew has the
"Mayhew Tree" from which these facts are taken,
and which brings the family up to i855.j

APPENDIX IV.

PRESENT APPEARANCE OF THE SARATOGA
BATTLE GROUNDS.

It has often been said that there is now nothing
left on the ground where the Battles of Saratoga
were fought, to distinguish the places where our pat-
riot fathers gained memorable victories ; that the
trenches have been filled in, the breastworks oblit-
erated, and the whole battle ground turned into cul-
tivated fields and luxuriant pastures, where flocks
and herds are quietly grazing.

These statements, however, are most erroneous.
On the contrary, the face of the country has under-
gone scarcely any change ; the same trees, the same
brooks, and even the same stones and bridges re-
maining in the precise localities where they were
sketched by Burgoyne's engineers. In fact, it may
truthfully be said that both the Saratoga Battle and
Surrender Grounds are, perhaps, the only Revolu-
tionary spots which yet retain numerous traces to
recall the memories of the stirring scenes enacted
on their sites. Among these may be mentioned the
following, which still (1895) exist :

Present Appearance of Battle Grounds. 303

breastworks which surrounded Riede-
sel's Brunwickers, and at the south-eastern extremity
of which the Hanau artillery, under Captain Pausch,
was placed (enclosing an area of, perhaps, twenty
acres), are yet easily traced, being still two, and in
some places five feet high. In the center of this
space, and in the midst of a dense wood, is seen the
old camp well used by this portion of Burgoyne's
army.

Second— -T\te traces of Breyman's intrenchments
are yet to be seen very plainly. The place is con-
siderably elevated by nature, and is known among
the farmers in the vicinity as Burgoyne's Hill.
Properly, it should be Breyman's Hill. It was at
the northeast corner of this eminence that Arnold
was wounded.

Third— -The stump of the basswood tree, with
another large tree grown out of its top, under which
General Eraser was seated on his horse when mor-
tally wounded by Morgan's sharpshooter, Pat Mur-
phy, yet stands by the side of the road.

Fourth — The house which was the headquarters
of Generals Arnold, Learned and Poor, before, dur-
ing and after the two actions, is still standing in ex-
cellent preservation.

7*y/"M--The barn which served as a hospital for
the wounded Americans, remains to mark the spot
where so many gallant men suffered and died, the
timbers of which are as solid as when first put in.

304 Appendix IV.

Sixth — The foundations and cellar of the house
in which General Fraser died while being ministered
to by Madam Riedesel, are yet clearly seen by the
river bank.

Seventh — The "Ensign House," which received
a portion of Burgoyne's wounded, together with the
tall Dutch clock which ticked off the numbered min-
utes of the dying, still remain.

Eighth — The sleepers of the bridge which Bur-
goyne threw across the "great ravine," just before he
crossed it to fall in with the scouting party of Morgan
on the afternoon of the iQth, are perfectly sound.

Ninth — Numerous trees, which were standing at
the time of the battles, still keep in their trunks the
bullets fired from the guns of Cilley's New Hamp-
shire troops.*

Tenth. Not a season passes that cannon balls,
grape shot, skeletons, stone and iron tomahawks,
short carbines, used by the German yagers, and simi-
lar relics, are not plowed up by the husbandman.

Leaving now the battle grounds proper and follow-
ing the river road along the line of the retreat and
pursuit from Wilbur's Basin to Saratoga (now Schuy-
lerville), the traveler is confronted by many souve-

* While at Saratoga, this last summer, a farmer
brought in a load of wood cut from the battle-field.
One of the sticks had' embedded in it twelve grape
shot. This stick is now in the possession of Mr. H.
B. Hanson of Saratoga Springs, an exceedingly
worthy citizen and patriotic gentleman.

Present Appearance of Battle Grounds. 305

nirs of a similar character. Chief among these may
be mentioned, first ; the foundations of the " Dove-
gat House" at Coveville, in which Burgoyne and his
staff rested for one night, both on the advance and
on the retreat, and which is rendered additionally
interesting from its having been the starting point of
Lady Acland, when, accompanied by Parson Brude-
nell, she set out in a frail boat, and in the midst of
darkness and a cold autumnal storm, to rejoin her hus-
band then lying wounded in the American camp; and,
secondly; <( Sword's House," the cellar bricks of which
still are visible, and around which the British army
encamped on the evening, previous to the action of
September 19. Arrived at Schuylerville, the tourist
of to-day may see the high breastworks of Gates' in-
trenched army, whence was thrown the cannon ball
which took off the leg of mutton from the table
around which Burgoyne and his officers were seated.
A little way from this, on the north side of Fish
creek, Morgan's intrenchments, several feet in height,
are easily traced. The breastworks, also, of Gene-
ral Fellows, on the north side of the Battenkill and
the east bank of the Hudson, are nearly as high at
the present time as when they contained the cannon
from which was thrown the ball that took off the leg
of the British surgeon, Jones (see Madam Riede-
el's Memoirs). Again, on the north, the plow has not
yet leveled the intrenchments hastily thrown up by
Stark, who thus made the investiture of the British
army complete — catching it, as it were, like a mouse
39

306 Appendix IV.

in a trap ; while the cellar in which Mrs. Riedesel
took refuge, with her children, during the cannonade
from Fellows' batteries, is kept in excellent condition
by Mrs. Marshall, who lives in the house and takes
patriotic pride in its possession ; and finally the exact
place where the British crossed the Hudson, just
below the Saratoga Falls about two miles above
Schuylerville, is marked by the intrenchments which
were at that time thrown up to cover the passage up
the river, and which can still be seen very plainly. They
are three hundred feet in length and from four to five
feet high, but are overgrown with scrub pines. Mr.
Rogers, whose grandfather lived on the farm at the
time, informed me that within thirty years the wooden
platforms for the cannon were in existence behind
the intrenchment. The survey of the railroad from
Greenwich to Saratoga Springs was through these
intrenchments. Surely these various objects of inter-
est all lying within a comparative stone's throw of the
actual surrender ground, furnish — even more than
those on the immediate battle-field — lasting memo-
rials of a conquered army.

APPENDIX V.

MRS. WALWORTH'S LETTER.*

New York, March 20, 1894.
WM. L. STONE, ESQ.

DEAR SIR : The very name of your proposed book,
" Visits to the Saratoga Battle Grounds," suggests a
host of delightful associations to my mind. My first
visit to the Saratoga battle ground was, when a very
young girl, I accompanied Chancellor Walworth,
afterward my father-in-law. Those who knew him
and the fulness of knowledge which he held of every
subject on which he would dilate, and his extreme
accuracy of statement can appreciate the value of
such companionship. Fresh as I then was from the
memory of the supreme sacrifice my own father had
made for his country on the field of Buena Vista,
this visit to the ground where my great-grandfather
had fought and received special honors, was a
marked event in my young life. The Chancellor
took me to every point of known interest; we entered

* This letter may be considered as an introduction
to the following appendix on the " Tablets."

308 Appendix V.

every house and examined the premises and the relics,
and talked with the old people.

Twenty years elapsed between that visit and an-
other, when with copies of military maps, and notes
from books sought out in the State library at Albany
I once more wandered over the battle ground with
my older children, who helped me to trace the old
points of interest. Some of the houses, notably the
one in which General Fraser died and the one that
had been General Gates' headquarters, were entirely
destroyed ; and only by turning over the soil were
traces found of the old foundations and cellars.
The earth-works were, in many places, quite leveled
and other works of the revolutionary struggle were
obliterated. We saw, however, what had escaped the
knowledge of the Chancellor, remains of the old
military road through the woods from the river to
Breyman's Hill, and clear evidences of the revolu-
tionary bridge thrown over the ravine near the foot
of the hill for the passage of artillery. Now, alas !
the least vestige of all this is gone and much more
that told its record of the past. When will our
countrymen believe that not in books alone are the
records of a nation to be kept? If our " Saratoga
Monument Association," or the government owned
this great battle field it would tell its own story to the
school children and to the indifferent grown people
and lead them to value the national life that was at
stake on this ground. If Burgoyne and his army
had passed over it victoriously, our boasted freedom

Mrs. WalwortJis Letter. 309

would probably at his day still be rocked in the
cradle of colonial conservatism. It will be long be-
fore we pay our full debt of gratitude to Saratoga
and to France, so indissolubly linked in the events of
1777.

Another visit among many I have made to the
battle ground since that time was memorable when I
was accompanied by the late Joseph W. Drexel,
Captain A. de R. McNair, U. S. N., and our friend, the
late George Ensign, who had lived all of his life on the
battle ground. The mutual enthusiasm of this
earnest, single-minded farmer, and the accomplished
man of the world, J. W. Drexel, was an inspiration
to the whole party: my daughter accompanied us.
With light wagons we drove from place to place, over
fields and meadows as well as roads, stopping at every
point of note, as Mr. Ensign and I led the way, to
exclaim on the beauty of the scene, the interest of
the locality or to consult about the best point for the
proposed tablets. One after another of us standing
up in a wagon, pointing and declaiming, a spectator
might have supposed we were making stump speeches,
so eager and enthusiastic was the interest expressed
during this whole day which was spent on the field,
with the exception of an hour at noon. At the old
historic Bemus Tavern we and our horses found rest
and refreshment.

That visit was a prelude to one succeeding it, made
with my son and a negro man who belonged to the
old set of " colored people " who are descendants of

310 Appendix V.

those who were once slaves to the Schuylers and
other " county families." I drove carefully over the
ground; and at each point, we had formerly selected,
had a heavy stake driven in the ground. This was a
mark for the preparation of the soil for tablets that
were to be permanent memorials of the heroism and
the results of the contest on the field of Saratoga.
You know how unceasing the labor has been to com-
plete that work.

ELLEN HARDIN WALWORTH.

APPENDIX VI.

THE TABLETS ON THE BATTLE-GROUNDS.

The several points of interest on the battle-grounds
which are marked, respectively, by tablets* — thirteen
in number — are as follows:

First — The advanced entrenchments on the " River
Road " (Mile Creek) ; the gift of the late Hamilton
Fish of New York city, the first president of the
" Saratoga Monument Association." The inscription
reads : " IN MEMORY OF NICHOLAS FISH, MAJOR 2d
N. Y. REG : ENGAGED IN THE BATTLE ON THESE
GROUNDS. SARATOGA, 1777."

Second — Breyman's Hill, where Arnold was
wounded ; the gift of Gen. J. Watts de Peyster of
Tivoli, N. Y.

Third — Balcarras's Redoubt ; the gift of General
M. D. Hardin, in memory of his great-grandfather,

* These tablets are all of granite, about four feet
and a half high, some with round and others with
pyramidal tops. The one at " Freeman's Farm " is
the most massive, being three and a half feet in
width by two in thickness, and which, as before
stated, have been erected solely by the continuous,
urgent and patriotic efforts of Mrs. E. H. Walworth.

3 1 2 Appendtx VI.

Colonel John Hardin, who, as a lieutenant in Mor-
gan's Corps, was in both battles and was also present
at the surrender. This tablet is a short distance from
the one formerly erected in 1877, in special com-
memoration of the battle of September 19, 1777.
These two tablets, with the one erected in memory
of Arnold's bravery on Breyman's Hill, form the
first group of tablets to be seen on approaching the
field from Saratoga Springs.

Fourth — The Great Ravine, where the battle
raged the fiercest ; the gift of Mrs. Estelle Willoughby.
This is close to the bridge between Freeman's Farm
and Neilson's, and with the tablets erected to com-
memorate the fall of General Fraser, and to mark the
British line of battle, form the second group of tablets
in continuing a visit to the field.

Fifth — The British Line of Battle ; the gift of
Mrs. J. V. L. Pruyn of Albany, N. Y. Mrs. Pruyn
is the widow of the late Chancellor Pruyn, one of the
vice-presidents of the S. M. A. This tablet reads :
SARATOGA 1 777. HERE THE FIRST ASSAULT WAS MADE
BY THE AMERICANS ON THE BRITISH LINE OF BATTLE,
OCTOBER 7. IN MEMORY OF JOHN V. L. PRUYN.

Sixth — Gates's Headquarters; the gift of George
M. Pullman of Chicago, 111.

Seventh — Fort Neilson; the gift of James M. Mar-
vin of Saratoga Springs, N. Y., one of the vice-presi-
dents of the S. M. A. The tablet reads : SARATOGA,
1777. FORT NEILSON. THE GIFT OF JAMES M. MAR-
VIN.

The Tablets of the Battle-Grounds. 313

The site of Fort Neilson is still (1895) marked by
a depression in the soil, which marks the Headquar-
ters of Gates. This high ground, on which rested
the American left, was strongly fortified, and the
works were called Fort Neilson, after the man who
owned the ground. An old wood-colored house with
dormer windows, and having near it a few poplar
trees, stands here, and is interesting from the fact
that a part of it dates from 1777, when it was occu-
pied by Gen. Poor and Col. Morgan.

Eighth— Morgan's Hill. This gift of Mrs. V. N.
Taylor stands in a prominent place about half a mile
beyond the second group, and on the ground on
which Morgan made his famous charge on Frazier's
division.

Ninth — Final point of the retreat of the British,
Oct. 7, 1777, the gift of the late Hon. Webster Wag-
ner, State Senator for New York.

Tenth --^^ site of the old Bemus Heights Tav-
ern, the gift of the late Giles B. Slocum of Detroit,
Mich. The inscription is as follows: SARATOGA, 1777.
THE SITE OF BEMUS TAVERN. THE GIFT OF GILES
B. SLOCUM.

This tablet, which also marks the river intrench-
ments and the Pontoon Bridge across the Hudson
river, is located near the Bemus Heights Tavern, and,
with the one formerly erected at that point and two
others on the River road, form the third group, be-
sides the large tablet on Neilson's place, which stands

alone.

40

3 1 4 Appendix VI.

Eleventh-- The tree under which Fraser fell : the
gift of Joseph W. Drexel. The inscription is as fol-
lows : HERE FRASER FELL, OCTOBER 7, 1777. His

FORCES SCATTERED BY MORGAN'S RlFLEMEN. GlFT

OF J. W. DREXEL.

The tree stands on the stump of the original tree
which has grown from the stump (which stump is
still [1895], plainly seen) of the tree under which
Fraser received his death wound.

Twelfth — Freeman's Farm, the gift of Hon.
George W. West of Ballston Spa., N. Y. The in-
scription is as follows: SARATOGA, 1777. THE BAT-
TLE OF SEPTEMBER IQTH. FREEMAN'S FARM. THE
GIFT OF HON. GEORGE WEST.*

*The ground here is slightly elevated, and on it and
Breyman's Hill, a short distance north, Burgoyne's
flank defenses were located. Nearly all the fighting
was done in this immediate neighborhood, A man
standing at the tablet can easily make his voice heard
on the field of the iQth of September to the south,
on that of the 7th of October, west, and on Breyman's
Hill farm. His halloo could possibly be heard at
Bemus's Heights, which with its poplars can be seen
a mile to the south. The engagement of the iQth of
September, was probably the hardest fought of any
in the history of this continent. A portion of the
ground on which it was fought was covered with
shocks of corn. In the battle of the 7th of October,
the Americans exhibited great valor, dislodging the
enemy from his position, and compelling him to
seek shelter in his intrenchments. These were

The Tablets of the Battle-Grounds. 315

Thirteenth — The breastworks of Gates's fortifica-
tions erected by Kosciusko.

assaulted successfully on the British right, and it
was at this time that Arnold was wounded in the
thigh, his horse falling dead as he was riding into
the enemy's works on Breyman's Hill. This eleva-
tion is so called from Col. Breyman, who commanded
the Hessians troops, occupying it.

APPENDIX VII.

JOTHAM BEMUS, OF BEMUS'S HEIGHTS.— BY
DANIEL HAZELTINE POST.

Considerable interest naturally attaches to the-
family which owned and occupied the ground chosen
by Gen. Gates on the advice of Count Kosciusko for
the American defensive works against Burgoyne's
onward march in 1777, in view of the fact that the
family name became forever associated with the im-
portant battles fought in the vicinity, and that mem-
bers of the family took part in them upon the
American side, literally defending their home and
fireside. There is a considerable amount of infor-
mation in regard to this family existing, but, scattered
through various volumes and never before collected
together in a single article, it has been of little use
to the historical reader or to the descendants of the
original settlers. To briefly give a summary of this
information is the object of this sketch.

At the time of the Burgoyne campaign there were
living upon the west bank of the Hudson, about four
miles north of the village of Stillwater, Jotham
Bemus and his family, which consisted of his wife
and six children. Bemus, was a farmer, energetic

Jotham Betmis, of Bemus Heights. 3 1 7

and enterprising, engaged in buying cattle and in
other traffic, and was evidently a man in easy circum-
stances. He kept the only tavern of any note be-
tween Albany and Fort Edward, and was well known
through all the region. He was, also, in 1774, a justice
of the peace. He was born about 1738 and conse-
quently was about 40 years of age at the time of the
Burgoyne campaign. He is described as of stout
build, and of a vigorous and determined character.
From Charles Neilson's account of Burgoyne's cam-
paign, published in 1844, it is learned at page 289
that Bemus's house was the only frame dwelling in-
cluded within the limits of the military operations at
the Heights.

At the time of the battles the family had been
residents in the vicinity for at least 1 7 years, for the
Calendar of Land Papers in the State Library, 164,
September 9, 1763, page 325, records that in 1760
the families of Bemus, Griffith and Park were occu-
pying lands in this region. There is a strong proba-
bility that these families came to this region from Nor-
wich, Conn. Jeremiah Griffith, who afterwards settled
in Chautauqua County, was born in Norwich in July,
1758, went to Rensselaer County, from which he
emigrated to Chautauqua County (See Young's His-
tory of Chautauqua Coimty, pp. 315-323). In
Hurd's History of New London County, 1882, among
the inhabitants of New London in 1651 occur the
names of Bemas and Park. Jotham Bemus, the sub-
ject of this sketch was married to Tryphena Moore,

318 Appendix VII.

and the History of New London County gives the
names of a family of Moores as living in that county
previous to 1689. These facts indicate strongly that
the Bemus family came to Saratoga from near Nor-
wich, Conn., and this is further corroborated by the
following from Bond's Genealogies and History of
Watertown, Mass., 2d edition, page 680, 2d volume :
" It is conjectured that the following Bemis family
are descendants from Ephraim Bemis : Jotham
Bemis and wife Tryphenia,/r0w Connecticut, settled
early in Saratoga County, N. Y., on the margin of
the Hudson River, etc."

It is believed by the writer that in the battles oc-
curring near the Heights Jotham Bemus and three
of his sons took part. This has always been a family
tradition and considerable evidence exists to prove
its truth. William Marvin of North East, Pa., a
descendant of Jotham Bemus, now living (1894), re-
cently wrote : " I think from what I have heard that
your great great grandfather (Jotham Bemus, Sen.)
and his two sons, Jotham and William, were all in
the army, and all in the battles of Bemus's Heights."
Mr. Marvin also writes that he has heard William
Bemus, son of Jotham, Sen., relate his army experi-
ences, and that his impressions of the occurrences
are thus derived from personal conversation with one
who participated in the battles.

Jotham Bemus, Jr., the first child of Jotham, Sen.,
certainly was in the American Army as shown by
the Archives of New York, volume I, page 250.

Jotham B emits, of Bemus Heights. 3 1 9

" BEMUS, JOTHAM, Corpl. Rhode Island Regt.,
Jeremiah Olney, Lt. Col. commanding. Enlisted in
Col. Van Schaick's for i year, '76. Served 6 years,
i month, 10 days. Discharged by General Washing-
ton Jan. 15/83. A. P. 17-62. Town of Saratoga,
badge of merit."

William Bemus, the second child of Jotham
Bemus, Sen., was a member of Captain Ephraim
Woodworth's company, the 4th, in the i3th regiment,
Saratoga district, known as the Saratoga regiment.
Col. Van Vechten (or Van Veghten), who was on
Gates's staff, was the regimental commander. He
lived at Dove-gat, or Van Vechten's Cove, between
Bemus's Heights and Schuylerville. Captain Wood-
worth was also a neighbor of the Bemuses, his house,
about half a mile back of theirs, being used by Gen.
Gates as headquarters, after he left the Bemus house.
Col. John McCrea was at one time commandant of
the " Saratoga regiment." The tragic death of his
sister, Jane McCrea, formed a leading incident of
the Burgoyne campaign. (See Archives, volume I,
page 322, for reference to William Bemus, also page
271, volume i, for reference to Saratoga regiment.)
That the third son, John, also took part in the
struggle is evident from the following extract from
his obituary notice published in the Saratoga Senti-
nel, Sept. 15, 1829: "* * Though young he was
in the American service at the capture of Burgoyne
as a teamster *."

The Bemus house was used by General Burgoyne

320 Appendix VII.

as headquarters for a time. When the extension of
the American fortifications, after the first battle, was
completed, Gates moved his headquarters to the
house of Captain Ephraim Woodworth on the
Heights. After the battle of Sept. 19, the Bemus
house was also used by General Lincoln as head-
quarters. The fate of the Bemus house is estab-
lished by a letter from Rev. S. Hawley Adams, of
Jamestown, N. Y., printed in Stone's Burgoyne Bal-
lads, in which he says : " My grandmother, Salley
Bemus Crawford (daughter of Jotham Bemus, Sen.),
was born at Bemus Heights, May, 1768. * * She
has spent hours in telling me of ' Burgine,' and his
army which she saw ; of the burning of her father's
house by the British, and of the sufferings of the
family for a time while they were wintering in a
barn — Burgoyne having destroyed all their build-
ings and crops." Though no mention of the destruc-
tion of the house appears in any of the accounts of the
battles, it is evident that it was burned in some foray
of the enemy after it had been abandoned by Gates
and Lincoln as headquarters. It was on the extreme
flank of the American lines, and probably more or
less unprotected after the first day's fighting, the
troops being massed at some distance from the river,
near Fort Neilson.

The site of the Bemus house is now marked by a
stone tablet bearing the following inscription :
•SARATOGA, 1777. THE SITE OF BEMUS TAVERN.
THE GIFT OF GILES B. SLOCUM."

Jot ham Bemus, of B emus Heights. 321

The Bemus Heights farm is now the property of
the Hon. James B. Jermain, the well-known philan-
thropist of Albany.

JOTHAM BEMUS, SEN., who was born about 1738,
died, it is believed, about the year i 786, at the age
of 48 years. This date, by some members of the
family, is thought to be too early. His first wife
was Tryphena Moore, who was of Scotch descent.
She was a woman of much refinement and culture.
In an old family Bible in possession of some of the de-
scendants of Jotham Bemus, Sen., at Bemus Point,
Chaut. Co., N. Y., is the following list of his children :
JOTHAM, WILLIAM, JOHN, SALLY, JAMES, NANCY.

This meagre record can be filled out to some con-
siderable extent in the case of two of the children,
William and Sally. Concerning the others but little
is known. Following is the information concerning
each of the children so far as obtained. The first
four children were by Jotham Bemus's first wife,
Tryphena Moore, the fifth child by a second wife
whose maiden name is unknown. The u Nancy"
whose name is given above was not a child of
Jotham Bemus, but was the child of his second wife
by a previous marriage. She married a Hudson,
and lived in Chatham, N. Y., and had one son whose
name was ordinarily called " Plin," but in reality was
probably Pliny.

Following is what is known of the children of Jo-
tham Bemus :

I. CORPORAL JOTHAM BEMUS, JR., remained in the

322 Appendix VII.

army until 1786, serving with distinction and receiv-
ing the " Badge of Merit." In 1805 (Turner's History
of the Holland Purchase, page 460) he took "articles"
to land in Western New York in township 8, range
7, and township 9, range 7. In the library of the
Buffalo Historical Society, in the letters to Joseph
Ellicott, agent of the Holland Land company, is a
manuscript letter from him, dated May 4, 1806, in
which he says he " has surveyed lot 44, township 9,
range 7, and is building on lot 37, township 9, range 7."
The letter is No. 187, Vol. 8, B. The lots mentioned
were situated in the present town of Hamburg, Erie
Co., near Buffalo. He was a member of the first
grand jury west of the Genesee river, which was
chosen in 1803, and sat in the court-house just com-
pleted at Batavia. Rev. S. Hawley Adams has the
following record in regard to Jotham Bemus, Jr. :
" He was a farmer of Erie Co., N. Y. Married Ase-
nath Andress. He was in the war of 1812, and died
of sickness contracted thereby. He had four daugh-
ters : Lydia, Tryphena, Annie and Sallie. Annie

married , and lived in Buffalo."

II. WILLIAM BEMUS, the second son, was born at
Bemus's Heights, Feb. 25, 1762, and died at Bemus's
Point (town of Ellery, Chaut. Co., N. Y.), Jan. 20,
1830, in the 67th year of his age. He moved from
Bemus Heights to Pittstown, Rensselaer Co., and on
Jan. 29, 1782, was married to Mary Prendergast, who
was born at Pawling, Dutchess Co., March 13, 1760,
and died July u, 1845. Her father was a leader in

Jot ham Bemus, of B emus Heights. 323

his section, and for his patriotic resistance to the ob-
noxious rent laws was in 1766 condemned to death
for high treason, but was subsequently pardoned by
the king. William Bemus, in 1805, left Pittstown
with his own and his father-in-law's family, and jour-
neyed to Kentucky and Tennessee, but came back to
New York State and settled on the shores of Chau-
tauqua lake, at Bemus's Point, March 9, 1806. In
1804, according to Turner, he had taken articles to
land in township 2, range 12, the site on which he
settled in 1806. He evidently visited the region be-
fore the trip south. He was a man of mark in the
community, of high character, benevolent instincts
and public spirit. He wielded large influence. He
had seven children.

The descendants of William Bemus are numerous
in Chautauqua county, and are people of influence
and standing in the community.

III. JOHN BEMUS, the third son of Jotham Bemus,
Sen., was born on the Heights farm in 1763, and lived
there until shortly before 1829, when he removed to
the village of Saratoga Springs, where he died Sept.
8, 1829, in the 66th year of his age. He was married,
but had no children. He was quite well-to-do and left
half his property to his sister Sally (Bemus) Crawford.
His wife died some years before his own death.

IV. SALLY, the fourth child of Jotham and Try-
phena Moore Bemus, was born May 6, 1 768 ; married
Daniel Crawford of Saratoga Springs, March 22,
1789; died June 8, 1865, at Evansville, Ind., buried

324 Appendix VII.

at Saratoga Springs beside her husband. She was a
women of great vitality, courage and energy, and was
a life-long member of the Baptist church. Her hus-
band, Daniel Crawford, was for many years owner
and proprietor of " Highland Hall," situated in the
southern part of the village of Saratoga Springs.
He died in 1839, aged 75 years. They had eight
children.

The descendants of Jotham Bemus should spell
the family name Bemus, if they propose to follow
the orthography undoubtedly adopted by their ances-
tor. This is shown by the fact that letters from Jot-
ham Bemus, Jr., and William Bemus can be seen in
the Holland Purchase papers above referred to, in
which it is signed in that manner. This spelling we
believe is now coming into general acceptance,
though in the past the spelling has been extremely
varied. The Massachusetts family adhere to the
spelling Bemts. In the Calendar of Land Papers
spoken of it is given as Beem\*. In Justin Winsor's
Critical History of the U. S., on page 361 of Vol.
VI it is given as Braemus.* In Spencer's History
of the U. S., Vol. II, page 500, it is given Behmus.
Hurd's History of New London Co. gives the name
Bema^. Ephraim Bemz'^ was a soldier at Groton in
1765. There are doubtless many other forms of
spelling the name to be found.

* This spelling, however, is merely taken from Bur-
goyne's Map in his " State of the Expedition ; "
though Mr. Winsor says nothing of this fact.

APPENDIX VIII.

GILES B. SLOCUM'S LETTER.*

TRENTON, WAYNE Co., MICH.,

October 10, 1877.
William L. Stone, Esq.,

MY DEAR SIR. — I take great pleasure in respond-
ing to your request that I should write you some of
my early recollections of Schuylerville, and of the
celebration which occurred in that village in 1822.
Brief as they must necessarily be, they may, perhaps,
possess some degree of interest.

It may not be out of place to say that my grand-
father, Giles Slocum, was well acquainted with
Major-General Schuyler (whom he greatly admired),
as he first rented a farm and afterwards bought it of

* Giles Bryan Slocum, who died on Slocum's Is-
land, Mich., January 26, 1884, was born in Saratoga
township, N. Y., July n, 1808. His grandfather,
Giles Slocum, was of Quaker descent, born in Rhode
Island, and moved at an early date to Pennsylvania,
and was one of the few escaped sufferers of the mass-
acre of Wyoming in 1778, and was a soldier in the
Revolutionary war. Frances, sister of Mr. Slocum's
grandfather, then five years old, was carried off by

326 Appendix VIII.

that general. The farm is now owned by one,
Lockro, on the west bank of Fish creek about a mile
below Stafford's bridge. On this spot I was born in
1808, but my father moved over to old Saratoga in

Indians at that time, and after a captivity of sixty
years, was found by Colonel Ewing near Logans-
port, Indiana. Mr. Giles B. Slocum had, in early
life, the advantages afforded by the common schools
and taught school himself. In 1830 he farmed on
the Au Sable river in northern New York, and came
west in 1831, landing at Detroit. After prospecting
in the interior for a time about Black river, he set-
tled on the Maumee, and assisted in laying out Vis-
tula, now Toledo. His father dying in 1832, he re-
turned east. He came back to Michigan in 1833
and spent the winter in the stave business at the head
of Swan creek, now Newport, in Monroe county, and
succeeded in getting the steamers "Jack Downing,"
'* Jackson " and " General Brady," to come up Swan
creek to Newport from Lake Erie. In 1834 he
paddled a canoe down Grand river from Jackson to
Grand Rapids. In 1837 he became a western man.
Among other purchases were three miles of Detroit
river front, where for the following fifteen years he
turned his attention to wool growing and became one
of the largest growers in Michigan. He was also en-
gaged in building docks at Detroit, Windsor, Tren-
ton and Sandwich. In 1848, he, with Mr. Mears, of
Chicago, purchased large tracts of pine on White
river and laid out the present village of Whitehall,
About the same time he took a contract to build two
bridges across the river Rouge. In 1838 Mr. Slocum
married Sophia Maria Brigham Truax, daughter of

Giles B. Slocum s Letter. 327

1814, and bought the place now owned by Hiram
Cramer, situated about two miles southwest of
Schuylerville. This was the same farm, in fact, on

Col. Abrahamson C. Truax, of the village of Tren-
ton. Three children were born to them. Elliott T.,
and a daughter, Mrs. Elizabeth Nichols, survive.

He took an active part in the organization of the
Republican party at Jackson in 1854, and was ever an
influential supporter of the party. In 1856 he took
an active interest in constructing the Detroit, Mon-
roe and Toledo railroad and was one of its first
directors, as his son, Elliott T., was of the Chicago
and Canada Southern. In 1861 Mr. Slocum was an
earnest supporter of the government, and did much
to put regiments in the field. He was one of the
trustees of the Saratoga Monument Association, of
which Horatio Seymour was president. His son,
Elliott T., succeeded him as such, and is now one of
the trustees.

Mr. Slocum was a self-dependent man. During
the financial disasters of 1837 he met all his engage-
ments, which were many, and the fortune he accumu-
lated was the result of numerous ventures which
were conducted with care and clear business judg-
ment. He was frank and bold in defending and
maintaining his opinions, but never sought to force
them on others. His honesty was never questioned,
and he created in others unbounded faith and
trust. None of the early pioneers of this section
were more widely known throughout the State, nor
more sincerely respected and esteemed.

His son, Hon. Elliott T. Slocum, has reason to
be proud of his ancestry, especially as he is of Michi-
gan birth and springs from a line which suffered

328 Appendix VIII.

which resided Major Dunham — the captor of the
noted tory, Lovelace, who was hung as a spy on
the hill just in front of the old Schuyler mansion.

much, not only to make his native State what it is,
but on the paternal side to contribute blood and
treasures in the struggle for American independence.
Elliott T. is the only son of Giles B. Slocum and
Sophia Maria Brigham Truax. On his paternal side
he can go back ten generations to Anthony Slocum,
who is recorded as one of the forty-six " first and
ancient " purchasers of the territory of Cohannet,
now Massachusetts. Next came Giles Slocum, the
common ancestor of all the Slocums, whose Ameri-
can lineage has been found to date from the seven-
teenth century. He was born in Somersetshire,
England, and settled in Portsmouth township, Rhode
Island, in 1638, where he died in 1682. Then followed
respectively the generations of Samuel, Giles, Joseph,
Jonathan, Giles, Jeremiah and Giles B., the father
of Elliott T. He should be equally proud of his ma-
ternal ancestor, Col. Abraham Caleb Truax, who at the
surrender of General Hull, refused to recognize its
terms, escaped through the lines and was the first
who communicated with Perry, and subsequently
conveyed the intelligence of his victory to the resi-
dent Americans of Detroit. Elliott T. Slocum was
born at Trenton, Wayne county, in 1839. In boy-
hood he was one of the leaders of his companions,
and notwithstanding the pecuniary circumstances of
his family were better than most of his associates,
he is said never to have presumed to arrogate more
than his equal rights with other boys. In accord-
ance with his own inclinations and the wishes of his
parents, he prepared for a college course and grad-

Giles B. S locum s Letter. 329

The remarkable and aged Albert Clements at that
time lived on the adjoining farm to ours, and he is
still living, adjoining, but about a mile east of his
former residence.

uated at Union College, Schenectady, N. Y., in the
class of 1862. The Rev. Dr. Eliphalet Nott, then
its president, signed Mr. Slocum's diploma confer-
ring the degree of Bachelor of Arts, which was one
of the last signed by that celebrated divine. In 1869
he took his second degree, Master of Arts, from the
University of Michigan. After graduating, he en-
gaged with his father in looking after their large
lands of lumber and farming interests, meanwhile as
a born American, taking more or less interest in
politics and in familiarizing himself with the ques-
tions relating to political economy. His investiga-
tions at that early period of his life have proved of
value to him in enabling the intelligent exercise of
views and opinions by which to regulate his own, as
well as the actions of others in matters connected
with governmental affairs. In 1869, he was elected
State senator on the Republican ticket from the
Third Senatorial District, which was strongly Demo-
cratic, and served with honor and to the satisfaction
of his constituency. In the many important sena-
torial contests of Michigan, Mr. Slocum has taken
an active part, and from them as from other public
matters in which he has likewise taken great interest
he has acquired a wide personal acquaintance. He
was one of the first directors of the Chicago and
Canada Southern railroad and was assigned the
duty of procuring for it the right of way. This
difficult undertaking he accomplished without sac-
42

330 Appendix VIII,

When a school boy, we used to find leaden bullets
on Burgoyne's Battle Grounds, of which we made
plummets to rule our writing-paper, as they were the
softest and best lead to be had.

About fifty years ago, there was a big celebration
on the 4th of July, of which Ph. Schuyler, the
grandson of Gen. Schuyler, was the leading actor.
The extensive tables on the occasion were set on

rifice to the public or the railway company. In 1886,
he was appointed a member of the Board of Park
Commissioners of the city of Detroit, and until
recently was its president, where he did excellent
service, proving himself a most competent and
faithful member. To his efforts is due much of the
beauty and development of the Island Park. Mr.
Slocum made two trips to Europe, where, being
naturally attracted by the wonderful dykes of Hol-
land, by which vasts tracts of low lands have been
reclaimed from the sea, he spent some time in study-
ing the methods and results of the Dutch engineers.
The knowledge thus gained, together with a careful
study of the parks of Europe, came into useful play
in the smaller field of Belle Isle Park.

Those who know Elliott T. Slocum appreciate
him for his independence of thoughts and acts, and
the frankness with which he presents and advocates
his views without demanding that others should en-
dorse or adopt them. He succeeded his father as
trustee of the Saratoga Monument Association of
New York, and with George William Curtis, Hon.
S. S. Cox, Hon. John H. Starin and others, took an
active interest in the erection of one of the finest
monuments in the world, on the battle-field of

Giles B. Slocums Letter. 331

the grounds of old Fort Hardy, with a canopy of
evergreens to protect the guests from the sun,
although the oration was delivered in a shady grove
on the eastern slope of the heights, near where
the Dutch Reformed church now stands, by the
" eloquent but unfortunate " Rev. Hooper Cum-
mings, of Albany, at that time a brilliant light in
the American pulpit, but destined " like a glowing
meteor, to go suddenly down in darkness and
gloom." I well remember, also, that there were
about a dozen old revolutionary soldiers present,
seated in a row on a bench close under the voice and
eye of the orator (so that they could the better hear
and see) ; and that when the speaker, in the course
of his remarks, addressed them personally, it was in
such glowing terms of thankfulness and honor for
their invaluable services, few dry eyes could have
been found within hearing of his voice. John
Ward, one of the body guard of General Schuyler,
and who was carried off by the tory Waltermeyer
into Canada, when the latter attempted the abduc-

Burgoyne's surrender at Schuylerville, N. Y., near
the home of his father's family,

In the management of extensive business interests
left by his father and in the creation and develop-
ment of new projects, Mr. Slocum has displayed
good judgment and has been uniformly successful.

He was married July 30, 1872, to Charlotte Gross,
daughter of the late Ransom E. Wood, an old
resident and wealthy capitalist of Grand Rapids.

332 Appendix VIII.

tion of the general from Albany, was among those
seated on the bench.

The gathering was a very large one, the people
of the whole county being nearly all there. Briga-
dier-General De Ridder, from across the river, a
substantial property holder and a general in the
war of 1812, was mounted on a fine horse at the
head of a large troop of light horse (as they were
then called) and other military companies. The
" soul stirring drum and ear piercing fife " were the
materials in that day in the way of music. I recall
the fact, also, that the breastworks surrounding the
fort were nearly perfect at that time, as General De
Ridder, at the head of the military, marched around
on the top of the entrenchments. Philip Schuyler
and General De Ridder were the great personages
of that day, and were the only ones who came to the
old Dutch Reformed church in their coaches.

Two years ago, I visited Schuylerville with my
son. I then looked in vain for the first vestige of
the old fort, or of the entrenchments on the heights.
I recollect the old Dutch Reformed church situated
about half a mile south of Schuylerville, as men-
tioned by Mr. Clements ; and in my childhood was
edified by hearing each Sunday two sermons by the
Rev. Mr. Duryea. The building was enclosed, but
not plastered, and was used by the British in the
campaign. I was well acquainted with Philip Schuy-
ler, the grandson above mentioned, who left that sec-
tion of the country in 1837. I, also, left the same

Giles B. Slocums Letter. 333

year for this place, where I have resided ever since.
I came here for the first time, however, in 1831.

I regret very much that I cannot attend the cele-
bration at Schuylerville on the 1 7th. I hope it will
be a grand success and insure the erection of a monu-
ment on the far famed " heights of Saratoga "
worthy to commenorate the great event of American
history.

With much esteem,

GILES B. SLOCUM.

APPENDIX IX.

LETTERS FROM THE EARL OF CARNARVON
TO THE EDITOR.

The reasons I insert these letters are, ist, because
Lord Carnarvon, being the great-grandson of Lady
Acland, they are worthy of all respect in a work of
this kind ; and 2d, as they not only correct grave
errors which have crept into all the histories of this
period, but show the lovely character of Lady Acland.

PIXTON PARK, DULVERTON, )
December 12, 1879. *

MY DEAR SIR. — I have received, and am very
much obliged for your very interesting article on
Lady H. Acland. She was a lady deserving, I fully
believe, of all the praise you have bestowed upon
her, and of as high gifts of mind as she was graceful
and charming in person and manner. There is at
Killerton a very striking portrait of her by Sir Joshua
Reynolds, of which I have the copy here.*

*Lord Carnarvon subsequently sent me a photo-
graph of the portrait of Lady Acland by Reynolds
here mentioned — in the possession of Sir Thos.

Letters from the Earl of Carnarvon. 335

It is, however, remarkable that in this place
where she lived so much and where, I believe, she
died, there is little remaining to preserve her memory.
I am now engaged, as I can find time for it, in look-
ing over old family correspondence ; and if I can
find any of her letters which would be of interest
to you, I will not fail to send to you. It is singular
that I have not at present any one letter that I could
offer for your acceptance.

I cannot conclude without adding how much the
generous letters of Gen. Burgoyne and Gen. Gates
add to the interest of the narrative which you have
so gracefully put together. I shall very much value
the gift which you have been good enough to make
me, and I remain, Sir,

Your obt. servt.,

CARNARVON.

W. L. Stone, Esq.

BERKLEY SQUARE, LONDON, )
November 26, 1883. J

MY DEAR SIR. — I am much obliged to you for
your letter and the volume on Gen. Burgoyne's

Acland of Killerton Park — and which has been used
in the alto relievo in one of the bronze tablets which
adorn the interior of the Saratoga Monument. Lord
Carnarvon died in 1890 universally lamented. The
Queen, the Prince of Wales and the nobility, as well
as all classes, joined in paying loving tributes to his
memory.

336 Appendix IX.

Campaign which you have been good enough to send
me. It is to me particularly interesting where it
touches upon the history of Lady Harriet Acland.

In the event of a future edition, I would beg your
attention particularly to three points which call for
correction : ist, that after Col. Acland's death, Lady
Acland was out of her mind for two years ; 2d, that
she married Mr. Brudenell ; 3d, that Col. Acland
met his death in the duel, not by any wound from
his adversary, but from a slip which threw his head
against a stone and killed him.

These three statements I believe to be absolutely
without any foundation, and I am at a loss to under-
stand how the myth arose. I know that I may trust
to your kindness, as far as lies in your power, to cor-
rect the error.

I am very sorry not to have received your letter
when I was in America. Pray believe me that it
would have given me very much pleasure to have
seen and talked with you. It will give me very-
great pleasure to procure for you a photograph of
Lady Harriet Acland which I have, and believe me,

Yours very faithfully,

CARNARVON.

PIXTON PARK, DULVERTON. )
9 April, 1885. >

MY DEAR MR. STONE. — You asked me some time
since for an autograph of Lady H. Acland. I

Letters front the Earl of Carnarvon. 337

could not then find one that I cared to send you ;
but I have since come upon a volume with her name
in it, which I send you with this letter.

I do not have it bound as I think you will prefer
to have it exactly as she left it, in its old fashioned
boards and with the leaves doubtless cut by her own
hand. The subject of the book is characteristic of
her [the title was *' Lectures on the Gospel of St.
Matthew," by Rev. Dr. Porteus, the favorite bishop
of London of George IV], for she was a very re-
ligious person and devoted much of her time to the
religious literature of the day.

It will give me very great pleasure if you will
accept this little recollection of one whom I honor so
much and whose memory it rejoices me to think is
cherished on the other side of the Atlantic.

Believe me, my dear sir,

Yours very faithfully,

CARNARVON.
43

ERRATA.

Paige 189, 3d line from bottom, for " Breyton "
read " Breymann."

Page 195, 1 3th line from bottom, for "extracted"
read " extricated."

Page 195, 5th line from bottom, for "covered"
read " carried."

Page 201, I4th line from top, for "Greek" read
" Creek."

Page 300, 9th line from bottom, for "Samuel"
read " Simon."

INDEX

ABERCROMBIE, Gen., 163.
Acland, Maj., 28, 224.
Acland, Lady, 40,46, 126,

172

Adams, Col., 135, 194.
Adams, John Q., 157.
Albany, 219, 248, 331.
Anbury, Lt, 57, 131.
Anne, Queen, 103.
Anstruther, Col., 192.
Anthony's Kill, 64.
Armstrong, Gen., 35.
Arnold, Gen., 7, 18, 32, 35,

68, 151, 163, 190, 228,

265.
Ayers, Robt., 206.

BAILEY, Gen., 248.
Balcarras, Earl of, 27, 127,

135. i56» !95, 203.
Ballston Spa, in, 232.
Bancroft, 44, 258, 295.
Baron de Tott, 230.
Battenkill Creek, 15, 27,

175, 202, 249.
Baum, Col., 14
Bear Swamp, 98.

Bemus, Jotham, and his

descendants, 316.
Bemus Heights, 37, 66,

115, 144, 164, 171, 222,

257,320,322; Point, 323.
Bemus Tavern, 164, 309.
Bennington, 15, 70, 102,

167.

Biddle, Capt., 295.
Bird, Col., 127.
Bloody Pond, 184.
Boardman, Sergeant, 245.
Boswell, Sir Alex., 235.
Brant (Thayendanegea),

278.
Brent, Hon. Rich., in,

246.
Breymann, Col., 14, 185,

247, 287.

Breymann's Hill, 70, 314.
Brickett, Gen., 254.
Brooks, Gov., 33, 191,

247.

Brudenell, Chaplain, 41.
Brunswick Journal, 48.
Brunswick Dragoons, 15.
Bryan, Alex., 283.

340

Index.

Buel,.Maj., a guide, no,

142, 150, 237.
Bullard, Gen. E. F., 7, 242,

286.
Burgoyne, Gen, 13, 19,

36, 59, 78, 92, 101, 119,

125, 136, 143, 150, 1 60;

map of, 324, 348.
Burgoyne, Sir John, 84.
Burgoyne Ballads, 9, 81,

1 60, 1 70.

CARLETON, Gen., 75.
Carnarvon, Earl, 126, 335.
Chadwick, Dr. E. 227.
Champlain, Lake, 13, 79,
^ 104, 175.

Charlottesville, Va., 161.
Cilley, Col., 7, 144.
Cilley, Jonathan, 146, 155,

169, 193.
Clark, Sir Francis, 32, 113,

117. 131, 185.
Clinton, Sir Henry, 17,24,

56, 1 12, 218, 222.
Cochran, Col., 49.
Cohoes Falls, 63, 91.
Colburn, Col., 135.
Condon, Michael, 106.
Continentals, The, 222.
Convention Troops, 2^0.

r- r-

Lonway, Gen., 121.
Cook, Col. Thaddeus, 1 28
Cook, Ransom, 206.
(^ooke, Joseph G., 154.

Cornwallis, Gen. 63.
Cortlandt, Gen. Van, 143.
Cross, S. O., 278.
Crown Point, 13, 163.
Cummings, Rev. Hooper,

DEARBORN, Gen., 7, 30, 46,

'55» 172, 243.
D'Estaing, Count, 164.
DePeyster, Gen. J. Watts,

7, 70, 25 7, criticised, 265;

272, 277, 287.
De Ridder, J. H., 300.
De Ridder, Killian, 299.
De Ridder, Simon, 300,332.
De Ridder, Walter, 300.
Dieskau, Baron, 215.
Dovogat's House, 19, 43,

201, 305.

Draper, Lyman C., 239.
Durham, Capt., 285, 328.
Dwight, Theodore, 88,

141.

Dwight, Theo. W., 106.
Dwight, Timothy, 105.

EASTMAN'S Life of Stark,

, 130, 145-
Eastman, Hon. Samuel C.,

1 1.

Ehlers, M. L., 228.
Elliott, Hon. Jno., 134.
English, William Alex.,

133-

Index.

FELLOWS, Col., 43, 52,

179.
Fish Creek, 17, 43, 52, 72,

107, 132, 174, 201, 213,

250, 260, 326.
Forbes, Maj., 193.
Fort Anne, 14, 136, 275.
Fort Edward, 14, 17,65,

150, 164, 184, 218, 248,

277.

Fort George, 52, 164.
Fort Hardy, 134, 204, 215.
Fort Independence, 164.
Fort Miller, 180, 259, 278,

283.

Fort Neilson, 320.
Fort Stanwix, 18, 232.
Fort Ticonderoga, 13, 29,

55- 79. J35, 163-
Fort William Henry, 184.

Francis, Col., 135.

Franklin, 10, 76.

Fraser, Gen., 14, 19, 31,

41, no, 130, 143, 173,
^198, 223.
Freeman's Farm, 25, 37,

67, 116, 166, 191, 2ii,

224.
Furnival, Col., 248.

GALL, Gen., 55.

Gansevoort, Gen., 232.

Gates, Gen., 10, 18,35,46,
56, 62, 68, 78, 102, 116,
121, 152, 159, 164, 285.

George, Lake, 14, 26, 56,

164, 170.

Germaine, Lord, 137.
Glover, Gen., 32, 49, 241,
_ 254, 296.

Gordon, quoted, 189, 221.
Grant, Gen., 81.
Graves, Wm., 146.

HAINS, Moses, 275.
Half-Moon Point, 63, 213.
Hamilton, Gen., 14.
Hanson, H. B., 304.
Hardy, Gov., 215.
Hardin, Lt. Jno., 285.
Harnage, Maj., 39.
Heath, Gen., 70.
Hessians, 14, 158, 241,

294. 3i5-
Howe, Lord, 163.

Hoyt, Gen. E., 182.
Hubbardton, 130.
Hudson River, 7, 17, 77,

107, 215, 229, 259.
Hull, Maj., 194.

JACK-BOOT, Hessian, 15.
Jackson's Regiment, 33,

190.
Jefferson, Randall's Life

of, 60.
Johnson, Sir William,

2'5-
Johnson, Sir John, 228,

278.

342

Index.

K ETC HUM'S Tavern, 197.
King's Mountain, 84.
Kingsbridge, 157.
Knapp, Sam. L., 1 7.
Knox, Gen., 182.
Kosciusko's Garden, 1 7.

LANSING, Mrs. Abraham,

233-
Lansingburgh, 213.

Lazell, Sergeant, 245.
Learned, Gen., 7, 28, 189,

204.

Lee, Gen. Robt. E., 81.
Lee's Memoirs, 119.
Leggett, Ebenezer, 133,

i56, 193-
Lester, Chas. S., 154.

Lester, C. C., 154.
Lester, Willard, 154.
Lincoln, Gen., 25, 38, 70,

240, 248.

Lincoln, Abraham, 228.
Lossing, quoted, 35, 92.
Loudon, Lord, 80.
Lovelace, Thos., 76, 284.

McCREA, Jane, 170, 184.
McCrea, Col. John, 319.
McLane, Lt., 244.
Madison, Gov., 61.
Markham, Clements R.,

273-

Markham, J. C., 264, 273.
Marshall, Mrs. Jane, 306.

Marshall House, 177,249.

Marvin, Hon. Jas. M., 312.

Mayhew, Chas. W., 79,
300.

Mayhew, Thomas, 300.

Mersereau, Wm. S. , n.

Millard, Mrs. Jane, 306.

Millard, Nelson, 307.

Millard, Ira, 307.

Mohawk River, 63, 87.

Money, Capt., 136.

Monmouth, Battle of, 145.

Montgomery, Gen., 249.

Mooers, Benj., 254.

Morgan, Col., 7, 28, 49,
in, 119, 136, 152, 185,
208, 224, 240, 265.

Moseley, Col., 249.

Munchausen, Baron, 230.

Murphy, " Tim," 7, 31, 246.

NEILSON, 17, 92, 117, 158,

.185.
Nixon, Gen., 49, 204, 243.

PATTERSON, Capt. Sher-
man, 249.

Patterson, Gen., 32.

Philips, Gen., 13, 27, 47,
124, 172, 237.

Pond, Daniel B., 1 1.

Poor, Gen., 7, 28, 155.

Potter, Hon. D. SM 117.

Porter, Col. Elisha, 251.

Post, Daniel H., 316.

Index.

343

Pruyn, Chancellor, 312.
Pruyn, Mrs. J. V. L.,

312.

Pullman, Geo. M , 314.
Putnam, Gen. Israel, 231.
Putnam, Gen. Rufus, 231.

QUAKER Springs, N.Y., 20.
Quebec, 249.

RIEDESEL, Gen., 14, 22,
126, 173, 201, 225.

Riedesel, Madame, 146,
173, 177, 225, 238, 305.

Rivington's Gazette, 163,

193.
Rochambeau, Count de,

64.

Rogers, Gen. Horatio, 10.
Rogers, Joseph, 156.
Round Rock, 98.

SACK, Registrator, 231.

St. Clair, Gen., 164.

St. Leger, Col., 13.

Sandy Hill, N. Y., 143.

Saratoga Springs, 141,
235. 270.

Saratoga, Old, 71, 100,
149, 165, 175.

Saratoga Lake, 93, 97,
262.

Saratoga Monument As-
sociation, 104, 117, 211,
238, 327-

Saratoga Monument, 263,

^ 308, 330.

Saratoga Battle Grounds,
105, 236.

Scammell, Col., 193.

Schenectady, 100.

Schuyler, Gen. Philip, 14,
17, 23, 47, 60, 65, 73,
86, 94, 149, 175, 212,

217, 331-

Schuyler, John Philip, 76,
^ 86, 100, 104, 332.
Schuyler's House and

Mills, 134, 216.
Schuylerville, N. Y., 1 74.
Silliman, Prof., 1 10, 133,

150.
Simms, Jeptha R., 246,

284.

Skeensborough (VVhite-
, hall), 13.
Skeene, Col., 287.
Slade's History, 289.
Slocum, Giles B., 313, 325.
Slocum, Elliott T., 327.
Smith (Taylor) House, 93,

115-

Southerland, Lt.-Col., 43.
Specht, Col., 30.
Stafford's Bridge, 94, 97.
Starin, Hon. John H , 104.
Stark, Gen., 16, 76, 164.
Stark, Caleb, 163.
Stevens, B. F., 1 1.
Stevens, Col., 163.

344

Index.

Stillwater, 19, 63, 106, 115,
151, 164, 283.

Stiles, Prest., 105.

Stone, Col. Wm. L., quo-
ted, 93, 141, 212, 214.

Stone, Wm. L., 2d, 126,
256, 262.

Stone, Arthur D., 206.

Stone, Russell, 128.

Stone, T. L., 128.

Squier, Sergeant, 297.

Strover, Col. George, 284.

Sugar Loaf Hill, 163.

Sword's House, 19, 200.

Sword, Thos., 200.

TARLETON, Col., 123.
Tenbroeck, Gen, 32.
Tory Hill, 230.
Trinity Church, N. Y., 200.
Trumbull, Col., Jno., 163.

UNITED STATES Flag, His-
tory of, 232.

VAN ALSTYNE, Jacob, 284.
Van Rensselaer, Eliza-
beth, 86.
Van Schaick Island, 17.

WAKEFIELD, Capt, 151.
Walker Homestead, 156.

Walloomsac, 146.
Waltermeyer, the Tory,

331.
Walworth, Mrs. E. H.,

238, 285, 307, 311.
Ward, John, 331.
Washington, Gen., 62, 1 20

231, 281.

Waterford, N. Y., 162.
Wayne, Gen., 163.
Webster, Daniel, 157.
West, Hon. George, 314.
Whipple, Gen., 296.
Whitehall, N. Y., 146,326.
Wilbur's Basin, 24, 92,

125, 200.
Wilkinson, Gen., 7, 27, 1 24,

144, 190, 227, 240.
Wilkes, John, 73.
Willard's Mountain, 248.
Willett, Col. Marinus, 233.
Williams' Rock, 184.
Williams, Maj., 192,
Wilson, Gen. Jas. Grant,

172.
Woodworth, Capt. Eph-

raim, 320.
Wyoming Massacre, 97,

YANKEE DOODLE, 80.
Yates, Col., 230.

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY

Los Angeles
This book is DUE on the last date stamped below.

NOVlt

DEC 5 1958

MAY 9 i960

5019

DEC 3 C 196

DEC 3 01964

Form L9— 40m-7,'56(C790s4)444

;pn

rsv

UC SOUTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY

001 156410 1